


This Place For You

by orphan_account



Category: IT (2017), IT (2019), IT - Stephen King
Genre: 1990s, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - No Pennywise (IT), Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Pining, Study Buddies, theyre in love and dumb its ok
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-25
Updated: 2019-11-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:08:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 48,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21538759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: “Oh! I didn’t even ask, what’s your name?”“Eddie,”“Eddie,” the boy says the name like he's testing it out on his tongue. He nods and puts a hand out to him, “Richie Tozier at your service.” he smiles.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Comments: 3
Kudos: 89





	This Place For You

**Author's Note:**

> i hope yall like this fic i hope there isn't any issues in the read but anyway it's my baby ok enjoy

**SEPTEMBER, 1993**

Eddie hated the fall for many reasons. The way the wind blew every bit of dust and leaves into his hair. How his allergies increased tenfold, almost as bad as in the spring. How suddenly _cold_ it got in Derry out of nowhere, leaving Eddie forced to come up with as many outfits as he could with the bare minimum of clothes he has. The rain that washed up everything and made the ground gross with wet leaves and the worms and _bleh_. The sun always at its lowest temperature or hidden behind clouds, making him look sickly from lack of a good vitamin source. Everyone was always sick, leading him to be absent from school on his own accord or his mothers out of fear of catching something, or _actually_ catching something and feeling like death had come for him in the form of the common cold.

The list goes on and on. Now here he stands, a day into senior year of high school, bitter as ever since the weather decided to be the coldest and worst winds, like, ever. 

He wore the most layers he could without looking ridiculous and add onto the look on his face of annoyance at mother nature and her decisions. Boots up to the ankle with jeans and a black long sleeve shirt underneath a thick, brown, fair isle sweater his grandpa got him one year that he refuses to let go of even if the design is totally hideous and only fitting for a Christmas Eve dinner. It’s one of those _would be itchy if you weren’t wearing an undershirt_ kind of sweater - but he loved it anyway.

What made this fall in particular worse, was the fact that Eddie was going to a new school. His last school was full of too many problems that made his mother panic more about him than for himself. She planned for him to be homeschooled, but Eddie fought against that as much as he could. He’d rather die than spend every single hour of the day with his mother. School was that break to be himself, even if he had to endure shitty people.

Now at seventeen years old, Eddie Kaspbrak is the new kid again. Feeling like a kid on the first day of Elementary School where he sat there till a kid talked to him first. High school kids do the same thing, but there’s always that feeling in Eddie’s gut that they’re saying something. Just like in his old school.

He rides his bike to school on his first day, which, lucky for him, was also the first day of the semester. Nonetheless, he can’t be the new senior with no car to drive or his mother driving him to the _front_ of the school. No one looks at him besides the typical “this is a kid I’ve never seen before” look, and they’re on their way. Some are obtrusive, but Eddie makes his way to his first period as quick as possible. 

He’s one of the first people in and he takes a seat at the back of the room. Students who already know each other are clustered, others are like him who spread out quietly. The teacher was sitting at her desk, already busy with something. She looked nice enough to Eddie, 

As the zero period bell rang, the hallway got crowded outside the door from what Eddie could see. That was when it _really_ settled in. New school. New people. Shit.

The day drags on and he finally escapes after the fourth period. He walks through the student parking lot, grabs his bike, and rides back home. Eddie panicked about the day and how it would go. He barely slept just thinking about being in a new school - but today relieved all of that. The majority of his classes just consisted of the typical introductions, activities to “get to know each other”, and every teacher going on for way too long about the rules of the classroom. 

He didn’t feel like sitting alone for nutrition, so he used the excuse of needing the layout of the school explained as a way to stay back and speak with his second-period teacher. She so far has become Eddie’s favorite teacher. She explains everything to him and doesn’t speak to him like he’s a confused child. And getting out at lunch saved Eddie again from the feeling of loneliness.

He makes it home in ten minutes and prays in his head that his mother is out when he opens the front door. He puts his keys into the bowl on the table by the door, then rounds the entryway to look and check inside the living room. The television is off and his mother is nowhere in sight. He checks everywhere else, even her room, and when he confirms the idea that Sonia Kaspbrak is _indeed_ not home, he lets out a sound of relief.

Eddie kicks open his bedroom door and puts his backpack down beside his desk. He kicks off his shoes and flops down onto his bed, bouncing a little with the impact. He stares up at the ceiling and closes his eyes. He thinks of too many new faces. The looks he was given, whether they lingered on him with side comments or not. 

He leans over and turns on his stereo. He turns till he finds his favorite station, blasts it loud enough to drown his thoughts, and lets himself sing along.

━━━━━━━━

The second day was just as boring as the first, and the third, and the fourth was not any different. Everything changes for Eddie on the fifth day of the week: Friday. Fridays, even if school _just_ started, are still the best day of the week.

Eddie starts to feel more comfortable, but he still feels a sense of loneliness. Some kids talk to him, but more as acquaintances. There are some kids though that have already picked him out of the crowd just like his old school. For him, there are always kids like that. He’s learned to just take it and try to hide it from his mother.

He’s sitting in his economics class, waiting for the bell to ring to start the class, when a new kid he hasn’t seen yet walks in. Miss Anderson, Eddie’s second favorite teacher, sighs at the sight of him.

“Why weren’t you here for the week?” asks Anderson. “You missed out on some work.”

“Family trip! Just got back.” he hands over his schedule and Anderson takes it from him to look over.

“Where’d you go?”

“Just a few miles out of town to visit my grandparents,” the boy takes his schedule back once she finishes. “Back up - homework already? You’re really giving some assignments Andrea?”

Anderson points at him, “Don’t use my first name,” she turns to her desk and he follows. She picks out the assignments he missed and hands them over to him. “Now, go find an empty seat.”

The boy walks down the rows and heads towards the back of the room. Eddie’s luck of no one sitting near him is ended when the boy sits down next to him. The moment he settles down into the seat, he turns to Eddie. Most kids have a short conversation with him. The ones that are just to get who he is out of the way. This kid _actually_ looks interested to speak, though.

He smiles at Eddie and leans towards him. “I’ve never seen you before. You new?” he states.

“Yeah, I just switched to this school.”

“This school kinda sucks, warning you now, but the teachers aren’t too bad.” the boy looks to Miss Anderson and back to Eddie, “Andersons’ chill. I had her for history sophomore year,”

Eddie nods, “I like her,”

“Just do her work and you’ll do fine,” the boy says and waves it off with his hand through the air. “Oh! I didn’t even ask, what’s your name?”

“Eddie,”

“Eddie,” the boy says the name like he's testing it out on his tongue. He nods and puts a hand out to him, “Richie Tozier at your service.” he smiles.

As Eddie takes his hand to shake, he looked down at their hands clasped together in a quick glance and makes a subconscious mental note of how big Richie’s hands are in comparison to his own.

Thing is, Eddie never knows how to speak with new people when it’s prompted introductions. He’s good when there is a reason to speak to said person or friends of his introduced him to them. It’s just easier for Eddie that way. It’s already hard to speak to this kid to get to know each other, but there’s something about him that makes it harder.

Richie is awkward looking, he admits. The kind of person that people would say is too skinny and his glasses are too big. But Eddie finds, under that direct exterior of first looks, that he’s handsome. He has a lot of black curly hair that likes to twirl up towards the ceiling. The kind Eddie guesses that would touch the tops of his shoulders if straightened. It’s a strong contrast to pale skin in the most beautiful way. From what Eddie could guess from him walking in - he’s tall. He’s got these big brown eyes that get more accentuated by his coke-bottle glasses and they rest on top of his nose that pulls his face together perfectly, with faint freckles scattered over his face. Cheekbones high and prominent enough so that Eddie would classify him as handsome as a Greek sculpture.

As Richie talks, the kids behind him turn to blur of color and their words are nothing but white noise in his ears. His whole focus is on Richie and whatever the hell he’s going on about on the classes he has. Eddie nods now and then. He doesn’t feel left out of the conversation, though.

Despite his lack of knowing what words to say, Richie keeps pulling him in with questions and helping him with whatever he can find; he even walks Eddie to his fourth period. Richie’s class is across the campus from where Eddie is, and he feels bad. He tries to get Richie to not go with him, but Richie persists. Eddie learns that about him quickly. What Richie wants to do, if legal, he will do it.

So, they walk together down the halls and out to the workshop building and Richie pokes his head in to say hi to the teacher, and then he’s gone. The bell rings and Eddie knows he’s late, but the smile and skip in Richie’s step tells him that he could care less. Eddie cares. The first day, already tardy? But Richie doesn’t, so he accepts it as okay and walks into the classroom. 

Richie gave him one last wave with the smile that’s too big for someone at school and says, “Cya tomorrow, Eddie!”

It’s the first time of the year Eddie doesn’t feel so alone.

━━━━━━━━

It takes no more than two weeks for Richie to ask. He spins around in the chair to face Eddie. The class hasn’t started yet, but Eddie was always early. Earlier the better, he thinks. Richie started showing up only a minute late, on time, and now as early as Eddie. Why Richie likes being around him so much, Eddie doesn’t know. But it’s a friend, and Eddie appreciates any friend he can find.

“When do you get out?” Richie asks, staring at Eddie with curiosity.

“Uh, after fourth,”

“Nice, same here,” Richie smiles. He scoots his chair closer and leans back, letting his long legs out in front of himself and crosses them at the ankle. His feet go under Eddie’s desk, but Eddie doesn’t say anything about it. “You go to work after or lunch? What do you do?”

“I just go home,” Eddie answers, slightly bashful. He’s never had anyone seem so interested to know much.

“We should go get lunch sometime,” Richie says, “I can drive us to wherever you want.”

Eddie taps his fingers against his book, “I, uh-“

“Nope! We’re doing it! Let’s go next Friday, you and me. I wanna get to know you better, Eds.”

“Don’t call me that, anyway, sure. Yeah,” Eddie nods with a small smile. “I’m cool with that.”

Richie smiles again at the confirmation. It’s a big one that makes his eyes crease with the lifting of his cheeks. It's goofy and its adorable and Eddie can’t help but smile too. It’s contagious like those laughs that lighten up a whole room.

And Richie Tozier’s conversation and constant smile made him so distracted he barely notices how the class had started minutes ago and how Miss Anderson is trying to get a group of kids to settle down. Richie turns away from Eddie and focuses on the board. Eddie does the same, but can’t help but keep smiling to himself.

━━━━━━━━

They sit at one of the tables in the mall food court with the tray in front of them. The mall is always crowded, but around lunch, it’s always even more packed than usual. The sound of so many people talking is loud and the people a few tables away are loud enough for Eddie to hear their whole conversation. Richie is sitting across from him and he reaches over to grab a piece of food off Eddie’s plate, and Eddie smacks his hand.

“You have your own!”

“But I want some of yours!”

“Then you ask!”

Richie rolls his eyes, but it’s more out of fondness than anger. He still eats the piece of food he managed to take and Eddie shakes his head. After a moment of simple conversation, Richie wipes his mouth off with a napkin, tosses it down, and leans back against the chair.

“So,” he crosses his arms. “Tell me about yourself.”

Eddie cocks an eyebrow and pokes at the remaining food with his fork, “What do you want to know?”

Richie shrugs. “Anything you want to share.”

Eddie laughs and sets his fork down. He takes a sip of his drink before leaning with his forearms on the table. He purses his lips to the side in thought on what random fact he can throw at Richie.

“My favorite color is either red or green.”

Richie nods, smiling a little, “Alright, what else?”

“Not gonna tell me yours?” Eddie asks, smirking, and sipping from his straw.

“I’m asking about you!”

“And now I’m asking about you. Favorite color, go,”

Richie takes a moment to think. “Blue.”

“Blue?”

“Yeah! What’s wrong with blue?”

“It’s just so...basic!” Eddie laughs.

Richie scoffs, “Okay, mister “my favorite color is red,”

“I said _or_ green.” Eddie smiles at him, and Richie shakes his head. He giggles then sits back in his seat. “Alright, next question. Hit me.”

“Where’d you grow up?”

“Right here in shitty Derry.”

“What school do you go to before this one?”

“Emerson.”

Richie sputters on his drink. He coughs for a moment and sets his drink off to the side. He leans forward, eyes wide, “Emerson?”

Eddie blinks at him, confused, “Uh...yeah..?”

“Dude! What!” Richie gapes at him. “And you fucking switched to shitty Derry High? What the fuck!”

“I had issues with some of the students.”

Richie shrugs, “I get that. For a school that’s like...the best in town, it has the worst fucking people.” he smiles, “Minus you of course.”

Eddie points his cup to him, “I don’t go there anymore, clearly,” then finishes off his cup of lemonade. He puts it down on the tray with the other trash they’ve collected at the end of the table. “But, yeah, I know. Emerson has a big name to uphold and it _is_ a great school, good teachers and all that, I just...yeah.”

Richie is quiet for a moment. He looks at Eddie, studies his face and the way he keeps moving his hands. He tilts his head, “Mind if I hear about it?”

“What? The reason I had to leave or how shitty the school is?”

Richie chuckles, “Just the reason you had to leave.”

“Well, uh,” Eddie twists his finger around a stray thread at the hem of his sweater and looks down at the glass of the table. “There was this group of kids in one of my classes freshman year and they picked me out of everyone since I was the smallest.” he laughs, “kids like that go for ones like me, you know? It’s easy. Well, anyway, it just got really bad one time and my mom flipped her shit.”

“What happened?” Richie asks and it makes Eddie look up at him. Richie is closer than he was before. He’s leaning on his forearms and stretching across the table with a mixed look of worry and curiosity.

“They always beat on me, that wasn’t uncommon, but this time it was...different. We were older, near the end of junior year-”

“They fucked with you for three years straight?” Richie spits out angrily.

Eddie shrugs, “I kinda got used to it. I learned to ignore what they said about me to me or things about my mom because if I didn’t I knew that would make it worse for me. So, one day after school they came up to me when I was walking home, as usual, and I…” Eddie closes his eyes and shakes his head, “I said something to one of them I shouldn’t have. I always bite back but...this time I really shouldn’t have. And, yeah, they just beat the shit out of me. Worse than the times before, and my mom finally lost it. I ended up in the hospital and all that. Then I had to finish off the year at home, which wasn’t fun being around my mom for that long. She switches me out and tells me I’m never going back and well,” he smiles, “now I’m here.”

Richie doesn’t say anything and Eddie’s already forced smile drops. Richie eventually clears his throat, eyebrows knit together closely, and he taps his finger against the tabletop.

“Is there...any...thing like that happening at our school right now or...?”

“No,” Eddie lies and gives Richie his softest smile to calm down the silent anger he can feel coming off Richie. “No there isn’t anyone messing with me anymore.”

“Good, good,” Richie nods and forces a smile back at him. He takes one big sip from his cup and finishes it off, chewing on some ice with it. “Because there are some guys here that even I’ve had issues with, but honestly, everyone has an issue with them so you wouldn’t need me to help kick their ass. The whole fucking school would join you.” and his playful tone is back to normal.

The two continued to talk about other things Eddie related. More positive things that Richie could get out of him. They eventually left the food court and started walking around the mall. Not looking for any stores in particular. Just walking around to talk. Eddie started to learn more about Richie as they walked into random places to do and look at anything. 

How Richie hates using dressing rooms because he doesn’t want to have to ask someone for help. Or how he has a preference for Vans over chucks. Or how he used to work at half the stores in the mall. How he loves skateboarding and biking. How he hates the smell of apple cinnamon candles and that he prefers honeyed almond over all the perfumes in the store. How he knows half the people who work at _Air Co._ and that he can get a discount on anything there, even on decks. And how Richie loves getting ice cream from the stand near the exit before leaving; he says it’s different when you get it at the end. Eddie doesn’t understand how, but he agrees to let Richie get him some when they leave.

Richie gets sherbert with a disgusting amount of toppings on it and Eddie sticks to his plain jamocha. He tries to tell Eddie that he hates sweets when Eddie tells him how bad that amount of toppings and _type_ of toppings is, but continues to eat it anyway. 

“It’s ice cream, Eds,” he tells him. “Nothing about it is good for you besides making you happy like a little kid.”

On the drive to Eddie’s house, Richie sings along to the radio and drums on the wheel. Eddie looks over at him and can’t help the smile that creeps onto his face. He didn’t know why a guy he met today already made him so happy and entertained, but it did. He would rather stay in Richie’s car till he was forced to leave than go home right now. But he had to or he would end up on the side of a milk carton by sunrise tomorrow. 

That made Eddie’s chest harden and the smile falls from his lips. Richie doesn’t notice any change in mood since he’s too busy driving and singing like he’s on a stage for the world to see. 

Eddie didn’t know how he did that. Do things like he didn’t care if people looked. When they were at the mall, Richie laughed as loud as he wanted. He cracked jokes that you shouldn’t say in public to Eddie and walked around without a damn about it all. All he seemed to care about was the fact that he and Eddie were hanging out. 

Thing was, Eddie always had the thought in the back of his mind that someone, somewhere, was watching and whispering. Maybe Richie felt that way too but enjoyed being himself too much to care. Eddie needed to learn to do that. He couldn’t with the way his mother was hanging off his shoulder like the devil in those cartoons, and Richie was the angel on his other.

He got out of the car once Richie pulls up to the curb outside his house. He first hugs Richie goodbye, thanks him for everything, and leaves. Richie waves to him once more and speeds off, tires screeching slightly. Eddie watches till the car turned around the corner past the stop sign and was gone. The old engine could still be heard on the quiet suburban streets. Eventually, it faded and was gone.

Eddie took his keys out from his backpack and sighs, dragging his feet as he walks up the steps to the front door. He gets inside and his mother is already on the couch, watching something on the television with a nail filer in her hand.

“You were supposed to be home two hours ago,” she says, not looking at him.

“I went to go get lunch.” is what Eddie tells her. It’s part lie and part truth. He stares at her and she still doesn’t meet his gaze.

She pushes up her glasses and finally looks at him. She sets the filer down and crosses her hands over her stomach, “Whose car was that?” her voice is quiet. Eddie hated it when her voice got slow and calm like that.

Eddie shifts the strap of his backpack on his shoulder and adjusts his footing nervously, “A friend from school. I needed a ride back.”

“You don’t have your bike?”

“I didn’t bring it today. I walked.”

Eddie can see the way her jaw clenches and unclenches. She licks her lips and tilts her head, “What did I tell you about walking to and from school, Eddie?”

He doesn’t say anything for a moment. Just stands there and looks at her. Her stare is cold and Eddie wants to run out the door and chase after Richie’s car.

“To not do it.” he finally spits out.

“And why is that?”

“Because…” he sighs, “mom, please can I just-”

“ _Why_ , Eddie.”

He swallows back the lump in his throat. “Because last time I got hurt.”

She nods. “Exactly. And I can’t have my baby getting hurt again.” she sits up and without realizing, Eddie takes a step back out of the archway. “You can also get hurt riding with people you just met, Eddie.” he nods, not wanting to say anything to keep him there longer. “So from now on, you either get a ride from me, the neighbor’s boy, you drive my car, or you ride your bike. Understood?”

“Yes, mom.”

“Good. Now, go freshen up while I get dinner ready.”

She stands up and that’s his cue to leave. Eddie practically runs up the stairs and closes his door as quick as he can without slamming it. He drops his things and throws himself onto his bed. He kicks off his shoes and curls up on the comforter. 

Then, he cries without thinking about it. It just happens, like it usually did. He holds back the noises as best as he can so his mother can’t hear him and takes a deep breath to avoid hiccups. Once finished, he makes the mistake of looking up and across his bed to his dresser where the mirror is. He looks at himself and groans, loud and dramatic.

━━━━━━━━

Ever since that lunch, Eddie has felt better. Despite what happened with his mother at home, it didn’t matter deep down. He feels better in general. He doesn’t know...how, necessarily, but he just does. It might be from the fact he has made a friend so quickly that seems to really like his presence as much as Eddie likes his. It’s been a month since then, and Richie has already become what Eddie calls a close friend or even a best friend.

Richie is easy to talk to and always listening to what Eddie says like it’s the most important thing in the world. (Unless it’s those times Richie likes to ignore him on purpose because he knows it gets Eddie riled up.) He doesn’t have Richie in all his classes, only economics, but that means an hour of being comfortable enough to act how he used to. Richie’s energy bounces off of him and Eddie reacts with the same vibrancy and humor that only they find funny.

He’s never had a friend like that. He’s had close friends, or at least he thought they were close, but maybe they weren’t. His old friends got along with him well and they always had fun, but this was different. This was two people who clicked right off the bat and Eddie can feel it.

It’s a good feeling. He loves this feeling.

“Dude,” Richie leans in across the isle of the seats in the middle of class. He whispers to Eddie as Anderson goes over her powerpoint. “What the _fuck_ is going on? I fucking spaced out and she’s like, ten slides past what I last wrote.” he’s smiling and Eddie rolls his eyes, handing over his notes. “Thanks, sweetheart.” his eyes linger on Eddie before looking down at the notebook.

Eddie holds back the words he wants to say, rolling his lips in, and kicks Richie as discreetly and hard as he can from the confinement of his desk. Richie bites back his laugh, but his eyes are lit up with the sound he can’t let out. He keeps looking up at the board, checking for Anderson’s searching eyes, and back down to quickly scribble and copy the notes.

He can’t do much without his notebook, so Eddie spaces out. He looks at Richie and the way his tongue pokes out a little as he focuses on his writing and Eddie smiles.

He really loves this feeling.

━━━━━━━━

**OCTOBER**

Eddie waits at his desk for the bell to ring. His head hangs heavy where it rests on his hand and he lets his eyes fall shut. He tries to block the noise of students talking around him and sounds of the hallway as best as he can.

“Got no sleep last night?” Richie asks and sits down. Eddie jumps slightly, eyes shot open, startled by the voice. He sits back in his seat and rubs his eyes and the second his hands drop, he glares at Richie. Richie chuckles, “Awake thinking about me?”

“You wish,”

“Of course I do! It would help me out knowing that someone as cute as you would even think of me outside of this room.”

Eddie laughs to cover the embarrassed flush that covers his face. He turns away from Richie and looks towards the front of the room. He prays for that bell to ring and Miss Anderson to jump straight into the lesson. Richie bounces his leg for a brief moment and then scoots to the edge of his chair.

He goes to say something, but the bell interrupts him as Eddie hoped. Anderson begins to pass back tests and when she places the paper down on Eddie’s desk facedown, he swallows back the sudden wave of nervousness. Richie gets his back and looks at unamused. 

Eddie shifts. “What did you get?” Eddie asks Richie.

“Ninety-three, how about you?”

Eddie gapes at him. “You got an A?”

Richie blinks and stares at him like _he’s_ the crazy one. “Uh...yeah?”

“What the fuck?” Eddie looks down at his test then back up at Richie. Richie takes Eddie’s test and his brows crease as he looks it over. “How did you do so good?”

“How’d you do so shitty?” he laughs.

Eddie smacks his arm playfully, “Shut up! I’m not good at econ, dude,”

“Neither am I,” Richie admits and hands the test back. “I’m just...I don’t know, I just get it.” he shrugs.

“Are you one of those people who doesn’t have to try to do good in school?”

“I wouldn’t say that-“

“Okay, so you are,” Richie frowns and Eddie shoves at him, “That’s not a bad thing!” he smiles. “If anything you’re a lucky bastard.”

Richie presses his lips together and pushes them up towards his cheek in thought. He sits like that for a moment, tapping his foot against the tile, and tapping his finger in beat with it. He looks up at Eddie and asks, “Want me to help you?” Eddie looks at him in confusion. “Like, with econ? Or anything, really. I can help you.”

“Like a tutor?”

“Yeah. Yeah, a tutor.”

And that’s how Eddie ends up in Richie Tozier’s car. 

Richie was blasting music from his stereo and driving down the road. He drums his fingers against the wheel and sings at the top of his lungs. Eddie looks out the window and taps on his book along with him. The trees fly by his view in a blur. The traffic decreases with each mile and as Richie gets further from the main streets.

He turns right onto a neighborhood street and slows down. He turns onto the driveway of the third house in the row of two-story homes. It looks like all the others in Derry: stone foundation, brick stairs to a porch, painted white, three windows at the front and (Eddie deducts) two at the back. Bushes line the front and a large tree on the road verge across from the front lawn. They all feel homey from the outside; just because of the closeness and the colors of fall. The inside of them? That changes everything.

Richie and Eddie get out of the car, but Eddie waits behind him. He unlocks the door and they step inside. In front of them in the entryway is the staircase, to his left the living room, to his right the kitchen; the two separated by archways. Eddie follows Richie into the kitchen. Richie tosses his keys down onto the island as well as his backpack. Eddie takes a seat at one of the stools by the island and takes in his surroundings.

It’s homier than Eddie’s house by a long shot. The kitchen is as clean as it can be, but the photos hanging on the walls and drawings and magnets on the fridge make it feel like an actual home. The dining room is just behind the half wall and even that small divide doesn’t change anything. The dining room is also decorated with family portraits, a hilariously ugly rug under the brown wooden table, and a fake plant in the corner to add a bit of life to the room.

Richie swings open the fridge and grabs himself a soda. “Want one?” he asks, stepping aside.

“Water is fine,” Richie strides across the kitchen, grabs a glass from the cabinet and hands the now filled with water cup to him. “Thanks.” Eddie murmurs.

Richie hums. “My dads’ out on a business trip,” he says suddenly while moving to grab a snack from a cabinet. “Won’t be back till next month,” he sounds sad when he says it. Eddie can’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for that. The stool screeches across the floor when Richie pulls it out and sits down, facing Eddie, “But my ma is here, she’s just working.”

Eddie nods and fidgets with his thumbs. He watches Richie dig through his backpack and munch on the bag of chips he picked. He pushes it towards Eddie with his pinky, a subtle offering, and keeps taking his things out of his bag.

When Richie flips the page of his book open to where their lesson begins, Eddie decides he doesn’t want to do this _now_.

“Hey, uh,” Eddie clears his throat, “can we just...relax for a little? We just got out of school so I’d rather wait to do my homework.”

“Of course, Eds!” 

Richie pushes the stool back and stands up. He downs the soda and crumbs from the chips in a quick go. He tosses the chip bag out but keeps the can. He pats down his pockets then groans. He mouths _one moment_ and he comes back from running up the stairs a few seconds later with a cigarette hanging from his mouth. He stops at the archway when he sees Eddie’s expression; his own eyes wide.

“You smoke?”

“That’s not a problem is it?” Richie nervously asks, lighter stuck in a position in his hand.

“No-no it’s fine,”

Richie nods slowly. He grabs the can from the table, them walks towards the backyard and encourages Eddie to follow with a gesture of his head. They walk through the living room and Richie swings open the patio door, lighting his cigarette the second he steps outside.

“You don’t have to come outside. I just can’t do it in the house,” Richie chuckles, “it’ll reek of smoke and my mom will kick my ass.”

The smoke hits Eddie from where he’s leaning against the doorway and he tries not to visibly choke. 

“You should let her,” Eddie’s nose scrunches up as he fights the itch of allergies from the smoke. “Shits horrible for you!”

“Hey,” Richie lifts his hands like a surrender, “to each their own.”

Eddie can’t say much to that. Richie sits down on one of the patio chairs and leans his head back, letting the smoke bellow out above him into the sky. Eddie watches the way his throat bobs, the way he licks his lips, how smooth the smoke comes-

“Your mom cool with you not being home?” Richie’s question breaks him out of his trance.

“Oh, uh, probably not.”

Richie chuckles. “Feeling rebellious, Kaspbrak?”

“Not rebellious, just being an _actual_ teenager for once.”

Richie laughs at that. He smiles as he exhales and looks over at Eddie, “It’s just a study session! She can’t get mad at you making some new friends, right?”

“You’d be surprised at the things she gets mad over,” Eddie scoffs. He steps further outside and sits down onto the other chair.

“Moms can be like that sometimes, but they mean well,”

“Yeah, they’re supposed to.”

Richie shrugs but doesn’t say more. He finishes off the cigarette to what he wants and puts it out on the bottom of his sneaker. He puts the butt in the can and puts it down onto the small, round table between the two chairs.

A moment of silence passes.

“It’s nice out,” Richie says softly after, hums it, eyes closed.

“Yeah,” Eddie pulls his knees to his chest. He wraps his arms around them and rests his chin on one of his knees. “I just hate the fucking cold,” he chuckles.

“It’s not _that_ bad,”

“It is! In Derry, it’s the worst!”

“Eddie, it's the warmest it’s been all season.”

“This is warm to you?”

Richie laughs at the look of disgust on Eddie’s face. “Like I said! To each their own!” the new look Eddie gives him makes Richie laugh even harder.

Not only was Richie’s smile contagious, but so was his laugh. Especially when he really got going; like how he is now. He snorts a little when trying to catch his breath and it makes Eddie laugh just a little harder. Everything about Richie is infectious.

Richie calms himself down and takes a deep breath. “Alright, what time is it?” he asks Eddie. Eddie looks down at his watch and reads the time. “One thirty? Shit, we gotta start doing some work.” he jumps up from the lounge chair. “I got work in two hours and I don’t know how long it’ll take to teach you,”

Eddie frowns, “Hey-“

“-Not a bad thing!” Richie parrots Eddie’s phrase from earlier and runs inside before Eddie can argue with him.

When Eddie runs after him, he misses the split second of Richie coming out from the side of the door and picking him up into his arms. Eddie flails and hits at him, but Richie doesn’t let up. He carries Eddie over his shoulder and laughs along with the punches Eddie gives him. Richie dances around with him like a doll for a moment, then tosses him onto the couch. Eddie lets out an _oof_ when he hits the cushions with a heavy bounce.

Richie grabs one of the pillows and throws it at Eddie. Eddie catches it before it can slam into his face and he yells a string of curses at Richie. He laughs as he flees the scene and Eddie climbs off the couch after him. Eddie grabs onto the back of Richie’s hoodie and tries to drag him back into the living room. Richie keeps his hands on the archway and holds himself there.

He decides to let Eddie have at him eventually. Eddie smacks Richie again and Richie backs into the island counter, hands up to surrender.

“Aren’t you the one who said we need to get to work?” Eddie glares.

Richie smiles, smug, “Yeah, but it’s fun to fuck around,”

Eddie rolls his eyes and shoves Richie to the side. “You’re blocking my stuff.”

Richie moves to his side of things and clicks his pen into action. He pushes his glasses up his nose and adjusts the book and assignment to be beside Eddie. He stands between Eddie’s seat and the other stool. He puts on an accent, one that Eddie can’t figure out what region it is from for the life of him, and reads the chapter out loud.

━━━━━━━━

There’s a group assignment and the dread of it overwhelms Eddie. It’s been long enough for him to know his classmates but doesn’t _know_ them. A brief moment of panic floods over him, but then he remembers that Richie sits next to him.

Two other kids that sit by them are added to their group and they begin. Richie talks to them like its nothing. The two bounce off of him and Eddie watches as he writes his answers. Richie tries to get him into the off-topic conversation every now and then by nudging him with his elbow. Eddie simply smiles, nods, and continues doing the work.

It always bothered him, group work. There’s always the people who talk, the one who tries to help, and the one who does the work. Eddie always ended up doing the work, and he’s doing it again now.

Richie laughs loudly in his ear and accidentally knocks into his arm, making the letter he was writing drag across the page. Eddie clenches his jaw and takes a deep breath.

“Sorry, Eds-“

“Just do the fucking work, Rich,” he glares.

Richie goes quiet. The two other boys share a concerned look and fall silent as well. Richie nods and grabs the assignment from the pile; their partners mimic him. Richie reads the next word problem out loud to them.

Okay, Eddie kind of regrets snapping. Seeing Richie get quiet and how quick his smile dropped? That made a pain spike through his chest. He was just making this new friend who was seemingly obsessed with him and snaps at him the seventh week in.

As they all work, Eddie finishes first. He scoots closer to Richie and leans to whisper in his ear an apology when Richie puts his pencil down and grabs Eddie’s wrist. Eddie looks at the others, they don’t notice, and before Eddie can ask _what?_ , Richie pulls back. He gives a wicked grin and aims for Eddie’s stomach. He starts tickling Eddie right in the middle of class.

Eddie gasps and pushes back, hitting him and fighting, yelling at him to stop. Some kids look at them and others continue chatting as they work, oblivious to the childish pair at the back of the room.

Miss Anderson looks at them with raised eyebrows and they stop. When she looks away, Eddie smacks Richie’s arm. Richie rubs it and laughs like what he did was the funniest thing he’s ever seen.

“You’re so annoying,” Eddie hisses. “I was gonna be nice and apologize for yelling at you, but now I’m not sorry!”

Richie sighs after he catches his breath and leans closer to Eddie. Their faces practically mirroring. He has a dopey smile on his face and giggles again.

“Don’t sweat it, Eds,” he whispers. “I know you take this work _very_ seriously,”

“You should too!”

“Eh...logistically, yes, but you know me…” he winks and laughs again.

Eddie shakes his head and spins back around in his chair. Richie finishes his assignment faster than the two other group members despite not paying any attention and it pisses Eddie off as usual. He takes him and Eddie’s work and hands it in. He stays back as Miss Anderson speaks with him for a moment. Eddie watches Richie nod and talks his way out of the lecture with a subconscious fond smile.

━━━━━━━━

On Thursday Richie invites Eddie to come over on Friday after school. No studying just _actually_ hanging out and sleeping over. Things that friends should do. Thing is, Eddie hasn’t been to a sleepover since he was seven years old. It was for a classmate's birthday and it was the most fun a kid his age could have. That joy was ruined when he got sick the next day and his mother went off the walls. He wasn’t allowed to go to anymore or have any after that. He’s eighteen now and he’s come to realize that maybe his mother doesn’t control what he wants to do. It’s not even a maybe - it’s a fact. So he agrees to the invite and leaves his mother a note when he leaves for school on Friday.

He meets up at Richie’s car during lunch - as he’s come to do frequently nowadays - and leans against the passenger side door. He spots Richie walk out of the building, but he’s got a girl with him Eddie’s never seen before. 

Her hair is tied up in a high ponytail, but he can see it’s red, and she has a similar fashion style to Richie’s; if not better. They’re talking wildly with their hands and she shoves at him after Richie says something. When they drop down into the parking lot, they hug, and she goes towards her car. Eddie shifts where he stands and feels a twinge in his stomach.

Richie takes his keys out of his pocket and holds them up, smiling at Eddie as he comes closer, and picks up his walking speed.

“Waiting by my car? Gosh, could you be any cuter?”

Eddie glares at him. “Where else am I supposed to wait?”

Richie shrugs and giggles. He unlocks the car but doesn’t get in. “Wanna drive?” he asks suddenly.

Eddie tosses his backpack into the backseat. “Dude,” he tilts his head, eyebrows raised, “I rarely drive because I hate it and I’m not good at it-“

“-I’m not good at it,”

“I know you aren’t,” Eddie laughs, “But you can drive a stick shift, I can’t.” he gets into the car and shuts the door.

Richie nods, “Makes sense, makes sense.” he finally gets into the driver's seat and holds back on making a joke.

The ride to the Tozier’s is as every ride in Richie’s car goes. He and Richie are singing _Pink Floyd_ at the top of their lungs with the radio almost matching their volume. Richie keeps his cigarette in his left hand so the smoke blows out the window and not in Eddie’s face. He’s driving in the way Eddie always feels he has to grip the overhead handle, but the music distracts him enough.

They lock eyes at one point of the song and sing it dramatically to each other. Eddie laughs hysterically at the stupid joy on his and Richie’s face. Richie leans over, noticing the smile, and pinches his cheek. Eddie smacks his hand away but Richie looks proudly amused.

“Eyes on the road!” Eddie yells at him over the radio.

Richie inhales deep from the cigarette and blows it out, smoke billowing around his face, “Hard to keep my eyes off you and on the road!”

Despite what he says, he looks back to the road and Eddie is thankful. He can’t see the shocked and blushing look on Eddie’s face. If he can see him out of his peripheral, he just chooses to not comment on it.

Another car that Eddie doesn’t recognize is parked in the driveway and blocks Richie from his usual spot. Richie groans and parks along the curb. He mutters something to himself and the car stops. He follows Richie up to the front door as usual but watches Richie’s body language closely.

When inside, they’re met with the sound of the television on and someone in the kitchen.

“Ma?” Richie calls out as he puts his keys away.

“Hey!” a soft voice calls from the kitchen.

“What are you doing home?” Richie asks and Eddie follows behind him to the kitchen.

Her back is turned to them from where she stands by the sink. “Got off early today,” she explains.

Richie stops by the fridge, hums a reply, and hands Eddie a drink. His mother turns around at the sound of the fridge door closing.

“What? You don’t wanna hang out with- oh!” She sets the towel down on the table. “Richie didn’t tell me he was having a friend over.” She looks over Eddie and he does the same back.

He hasn’t seen Richie’s dad yet, but it’s clear to him he looks just like his mother. She’s just as pale as Richie and has the same big brown eyes. Her skin wrinkles in the sign of age and she bares more dark freckles than her son. Her hair is blonde, but the dark eyebrows, black and grey grown in roots, tell Eddie it’s dyed. Her clothing is well put together; even for simple casual wear. She’s beautiful, and it all makes sense.

“I’m an adult, ma,” Richie drags his feet as he walks over to her and looks at the leftovers from her lunch. “I don’t need to tell you _everything_ ,”

She smacks his hand away when he tries to pick at the food. “Yes, but I should know who’s in my house,”

Eddie shifts on his feet awkwardly, “Uh, I can go if-“

“No!” she and Richie say in unison. She walks over to him with her hands out, then takes Eddie’s in her own, “Any friend of Richie’s is welcome here,” she smiles. Her smile is the same as Richie’s. “What’s your name, honey?”

Eddie goes to answer but Richie interrupts, “Eddie,” he says, eating the food his mother smacked him away from not even a minute ago. She shakes her head and sighs.

“I’m Maggie,” she tells him, smiling warmly. “It’s nice to see Richie making new friends,” she leans close to Eddie and whispers, “his old ones I was not _very_ fond of.”

“Hey! I’m right here!” Richie yells behind a mouthful.

Maggie waves her hand, dismissing, “It’s not about you,”

Richie rolls his eyes and gathers his things from the island. He takes Eddie to his side, slinging it across his shoulders, “We’re going upstairs.”

“Are you staying the night?” she asks and Eddie nods, “Oh good! If you need anything, just ask.” she gives him one final smile before Richie drags them away from her.

Richie apologizes to him when they’re out of her hearing reach. Eddie doesn’t mind it, he likes her already. Far better than his mother by a long shot. 

Once up the stairs, it hits Eddie. He’s never even seen Richie’s room. They’ve always studied downstairs or hung out in the living room. He doesn’t know why he feels so concerned about the state of Richie’s room and being in it. Richie isn’t _gross_ per say, but he’s not clean either. Most people aren’t up to Eddie’s idea of clean anyway, though.

There are four doors in the hallway and Richie’s room is the last on the left. The door next to it is ajar and it proves to be the bathroom. The inside of Richie’s room is whatever Eddie could expect from him. It’s stylized the way he dresses. It’s messy, but the clothes and all are shoved to one corner of the room to make the appearance of being clean. The clock on his wall behind the door draws Eddie’s attention.

“Dude,” he points to it. “Really?”

“What?”

It’s a bright red giant watch and it takes up a good portion of the wall. 

“These are _so_ out of style! It’d work if it was, I don’t know, eighty-seven still?”

Richie walks over to him and blocks the clock behind his back. He puts his arms out and pushes Eddie away.

“I invite you into my home and you criticize the devices in which tell me the time?” He shakes his head and clicks his tongue. “How rude! And hey! It could be vintage!”

“It hasn’t even been a decade and you want to call it vintage?”

“Yeah!”

Eddie laughs, “Well, it _also_ doesn’t match the design of your room! Like, everything-“

Richie puts his hand over Eddie’s mouth. “Shh…” he closes his eyes and Eddie can’t help but giggle behind his palm. His breath is warm and tickles Richie’s skin. “No more talking!”

Richie lets him go and Eddie mimes zipping his mouth shut and throwing away the key. He laughs and Richie rolls his eyes, leaving the room. Eddie sets his backpack down by the edge of the bed and slips his shoes off. He walks around and looks at the photos of family and friends Richie stuck to the wall. He smiles at the ones of him with his mother and then looks at the posters. Movies, bands, models, etc. A frame on the desk grabs his attention. Inside it is a photo of Richie with the same red-headed girl from earlier. She’s cute, no denying that. Eddie swallows back the feeling in his throat and draws his attention to the record player on the desk. 

On the ground in a box next to it is full of records. Eddie squats down and starts shuffling through them. They all vary in genre, but rock seems to take over predominantly in the collection. _Good taste_ , Eddie notes. 

“Wanna play something?”

Eddie jumps and almost hits his head on the desk. He looks up and Richie made his way behind him without a sound.

“Way to scare a guy, shit,”

Richie laughs, “Sorry,” he squats down next to Eddie. “Pick whatever you want. Guest always gets music priority.”

“Since when was that a rule of hospitality?”

“Since I said so.” Richie stands up and throws himself onto his bed.

A record catches his eye and he pulls it out just to look at it. The condition is well kept and the worn plastic covering is the only sign of years of owning.

“My mom never let me get my own player,” Eddie says while he turns it over to see the back design, “We have one in the house but it just has her old opera records.” he laughs. He takes the album from the slip and opens it to look at the designed sleeve. “I mean, I have a radio but-“

“It’s just not the same,” Richie finishes for him. 

Eddie looks over his shoulder to glare at him, maybe even give him the bird, but his mind flatlines. Richie put his arms behind his head and his shirt rides up, revealing a sliver of his stomach. His hip bones are sharp and push the tight waistband of his jeans up, and his stomach is slightly toned.

“What record have you always wanted?” Richie asks, moving his hips up and adjusts himself on the bed. 

It taunts Eddie whether he means to do it or not. Eddie pulls his eyes away and looks at Richie. He shrugs, whipping his head back around to the album he’s holding as he speaks to hide his face,

“Dunno…” he puts the album back into the sleeve and places it into its spot. “Too many to choose from.” is what he manages to say. 

It's a partially true answer. There are a lot of musicians he would love to have physical copies of their records for, but his mind is still tugging at the idea of looking back at Richie’s splayed out body again and to acknowledge how weird that is.

Eddie shuffles through the records a little longer till he comes across one he likes. He pulls it out of the pile and out of the sleeve, places it on the track, and lets the record sing to him.

He spins around on beat with the iconic introduction vocals of _Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go_ , and snaps along.

Richie sits up and laughs at the dance number before him. “Wham? That’s what you pick? Out of that record store of a pile?”

Eddie dances along happily, “I love Wham,” is all he says and continues singing along.

Richie watches him for a while before he gets up too and joins him. He cranks up the volume dial and sings along the best he can with the high notes - and failing miserably, making Eddie laugh at the voice cracks. Richie takes hold of his hands and they dance in unison to the beat. He spins Eddie around and Eddie keeps laughing so hard at the faces Richie makes that his stomach begins to hurt.

The second track starts up and Eddie falls back onto the bed. He pants and kicks Richie away when he tries to get Eddie dancing again. Richie frowns, but he falls down beside Eddie. The two laid there, still singing along, and panting.

He has dinner with Maggie and Richie in the living room. Usually, a friend’s parent makes him feel slightly nervous or uncomfortable, but not with Maggie. She acts like Eddie is just another son of hers. They go back up to Richie’s room shortly after cleaning up and get ready for bed. Richie grabs blankets and an extra pillow from the cabinet and when Eddie starts to throw them on the floor, Richie stops him.

“You’re not sleeping on the floor,”

“But-“

“The extra blankets and shit are so if I pull my blanket in the night you have some backup,” he says it like it’s obvious.

Eddie picks the items back up. “Okay,” he says and puts them onto Richie’s bed. 

It’s a double, but it’s still a tight fit for two grown boys. Richie sleeps towards the footboard and insists Eddie takes the proper pillowed side of the bed. Whenever Eddie tries to fight Richie’s actions, it never works. What Richie says about their situation of things goes. So, Eddie curls up, back to Richie’s feet so he doesn’t wake up to toes in his face, and turns off the lamp on the nightstand. Richie pats Eddie’s leg and mumbles a good night to him. Eddie whispers one back, already drifting off to sleep with his face pressed into the soft pillow.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie wakes up completely spread out across the bed. He’s lying on his back and got his legs spread open across on top of Richie. Richie is still laying in the same spot he fell asleep in, but he shifted onto his back sometime into the night and is snoring softly. Eddie looks over at the clock. He woke up a few minutes before the alarm Richie has set and groans. 

He debates for a minute about going back to sleep or getting ready; he eventually chooses the latter.

The alarm was Eddie’s idea, though, so he can’t complain about it. He has practice at eight in the morning and needed Richie to bring him. He would go against it, but Richie already agreed to do it for him.

Track tryouts were the second week of school and Eddie decided well, why not, and that’s how he ended up on the team. He played for the soccer team at his old school and it helped him make some friends, so he decided on the track team for this new school. His old friends always said he was a fast runner and, yeah, they were right.

He finishes up in the bathroom and when he comes back into the room, Richie had turned the alarm off and went back to sleep, but at the head of the bed this time. Eddie tiptoes to his bag and pulls out his track clothes. While slipping his pajamas off to put the clothes on, he peeks out through the blinds on the window to look outside. The sky is cloudy and just _looks_ cold. It’s a blessing and a curse for practice. Cool him off when he’s overheated from running, but too cold when he first gets there and isn’t exercising anymore.

Eddie digs through his bag and cures under his breath. He had forgotten to bring a jacket. He always brought a jacket along with him and the one time he needed it, he didn’t have it. 

He looks up over the footboard and Richie is still sound asleep. He bites his lip, thinking, then stands up slowly. He walks over to the closet and tries to open it’s door as quietly as he can, but it creaks anyway, making him wince. He looks over his shoulder to check and Richie hasn’t moved. Shit was he a heavy sleeper.

He grabs a plain black jacket from the rack and slips it on. He puts his shoes on and looks up at the clock, and panic sets in. He has to wake up Richie. Eddie shakes him, whispering his name, but Richie doesn’t budge. Eddie shoves him harder and practically yells his name.

Startled by the sound, Richie’s eyes shot open and he inhales sharply. He blinks a few times to adjust his vision, “Huh-“ 

“We gotta get going, Rich.”

Richie rubs his eyes and groans. “Fuck,” he draws the word out dramatically. He grabs his glasses from the nightstand, haphazardly puts them on, and gets out of bed. He puts on his slippers and cracks his back (which Eddie makes a face at), and heads out of his room, “Alright, let’s go,”

They jog as quietly as they can out the door, but Eddie skids to stop.

“Wait!” he whispers and Richie whips around. “Do you have a granola bar, a banana or something?”

Richie giggles to a joke he tells himself in his head - which Eddie catches onto and rolls his eyes at - and drags his feet when walking into the kitchen. He reaches above the fridge and grabs a granola bar for Eddie.

“We got everything now?”

“Yes,” Eddie says, opening the packaging.

Richie takes his keys from the bowl and swings open the front door. “Fuck its cold!” he curses once they’re both outside and he locks the door.

Richie’s footsteps stop behind him from where Eddie stands waiting by the passenger door. He turns around and Richie’s staring at him. His brows are furrowed in thought and he’s leaning his weight onto one leg. His keys bounce against his pajama covered leg as he fidgets with them.

“Are we gonna go or are you gonna keep looking confused?”

“Is that mine?”

“What?”

“The jacket. Is that mine?”

“Uh,” Eddie grabs a hold of one side of it and pulls it around himself. “Yeah, I needed a jacket for practice and I just figured-“

“No, it’s fine. Take it for as long as you need it.”

Richie unlocks his car and Eddie hands him his backpack before getting inside. Richie tosses it into the trunk, hops inside, and gets the engine going. The radio blares and Richie lets out a loud groan. He reaches for the dial and turns it down. He shakes his head and pulls off from the curb.

They get to the school just before practice starts. Eddie gets his stuff from the trunk and thanks Richie for the ride, then runs to the gates that lead to the track and football field. Other kids are practicing for different sports when he walks in, but it’s mostly track kids from every group in their designated areas with their coaches. He finds his locker in the locker room and puts his things away. 

The kid next to him is putting on his shoes when he asks, “You new here?”

“Yeah, yeah, just joined the team.” he smiles as welcoming as he can for someone so tired.

“You like it so far? The school I mean,” he says. He stands up from the bench and closes his locker. “Oh, sorry, hi I’m Mike,” he nods with a smile.

“Eddie,”

“Coach isn’t too hard on us,” Mike tells him. “Especially when it’s cold and the first practice of the season.”

“How long have you been on the team?” Eddie asks as they leave the locker room.

“Since freshman year.” Eddie makes a noise that shows he’s impressed and Mike looks a little bashful about it, “yeah, yeah - it’s easy. If you made it on the team then you’ll be good for the year. A good way to get out of class, though.”

“Oh, for sure! I was on the soccer team at my old school and getting out of my last few classes of the day was the _real_ benefit of it.”

Mike guides him to the bleachers and they sit down on the cold metal with all the other kids. Some are already running against each other for fun, practice, and by coaches orders. Eddie watches them while he and Mike talk and get to know one another. 

Eddie discovers he likes Mike only through a few words of conversation. Eddie has acquaintances in all his classes, but not really friends. Richie and this one girl named Hailey in his woodshop class are the ones he considers friends. It may be too soon, but he considers Mike a friend now. Adds him to the short list and holds onto it tightly. Mike is handsome, kind, always smiling, and Eddie feels content with sitting and talking on the bleachers with Mike Hanlon.

One of the boys coming back from his dash and he looks at Eddie and Eddie feels his stomach drop. His blonde hair stands out as the most notable feature for him. Mike notices how tense Eddie got, and looks in the direction of his change in mood.

“Oh come on,” Mike rolls his eyes. “It’s too early for this shit.”

“Yeah,” Eddie chokes out. “way too fucking early.”

Mike nudges him, “Hey, we’re at practice. With coach around? Not even Andrew would risk getting kicked off the team for something as stupid as picking on the new kid.”

“He and his friends have been doing it since I got here,”

Mike sighs, “Yeah, they’re assholes, I’m sorry about that.”

Eddie breaks his hawk-like stare on Andrew to look at Mike. He smiles weakly, “Don’t worry about it.”

“He’s coming over here,” Mike mutters to him. “Just let him run his mouth…”

“It’s hard,” Eddie smirks, “but I’m starting to learn that.” he chuckles.

“Hey!” Andrew leans his on the fence that separates the bleachers and the track. He’s panting from the run and has a towel around his neck. “Didn’t know you got on the team, short stack.”

“Yeah, I’m a good runner.”

Andrew laughs loudly, “I know that! Just never thought you’d actually do something fucking useful.”

Eddie smiles tightly, “Does it bother you that I might be better at this than you?”

“Eddie…” Mike grits under his breath, nudging Eddie’s ankle with his foot.

Andrew clenches his jaw and his nose twitches as it flares. He smiles condescendingly, “Running on a track is one thing and running away from me kicking your ass in the cafeteria is another, girly boy.” he leans further over to get closer to Eddie and Mike. “When this practice is over, you better run to your boyfriend's car and get the fuck out of here before I get to you first.”

Eddie’s hand fists around the bottom of the jacket. Mike stands up then, “Fuck off, man. You don’t want coach to have to hear it, do you? Can’t afford to lose this or the school gets up your ass again, huh?”

Andrew is about to say something to Mike when one of his friends swoops in and saves the situation. He mouths something to them as he’s dragged off towards the locker room. Mike’s shoulders fall and he lets out a deep breath, sitting back down.

“Thanks for saying something,” Eddie whispers.

Mike laughs, letting all his jitters out with it, “I was shaking the entire fucking time he was talking to you and I just...I had to say something. He would have gone on and on.”

Eddie picks at the metal on the zipper, not looking at Mike, “They all just say shit. It doesn’t get to me, but you know…”

Mike nods and looks out to the field. His leg bounces on the metal, lips opening and closing as he decides on what to say, and turns to Eddie after a few seconds.

“Hey, uh, I know we just met but...can I ask about something?”

Eddie chuckles. “You just experienced that with me so, ask away my friend.”

“What did he mean about the car thing? You have a boyfriend?”

Eddie’s head shot up. He looks at Mike so quick he could get whiplash. “No! No, no, I don’t. He’s just-“

Mike leans in, “Dude,” he whispers. “If you do that’s fine. I’m cool with that. Just impressive, you _just_ moved here and already have a boyfriend. Most people live here their whole lives and don’t get anything at all.” he laughs.

“Thank you for the supportive words,” Eddie whispers and smiles, “but I don’t have a boyfriend. I just get a ride from my friend all the time because I don’t drive. Andrew and that group probably noticed.”

“Ohhh,” Mike nods and moves away from Eddie, giving him space again.

“Yeah…” Eddie says softly. 

They fall into silence and continue to watch the practices going on in front of them. Mike cheers on his friends loudly beside him. He stands up to clap wildly and his friends laugh from the field. Eddie smiles up at him and tugs the jacket around his body tighter.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie walks out from the market with a bag hanging from his hand. His mother sent him out to run errands for her and he was more than willing to get out of the house no matter the reason. He’s about to make his next stop at the Drugstore that always made him have an underlying feeling of unease when the shop he always passes catches his eye. On display was something his mother always has to mention when she drives or walks past it. It’s a yellow sundress that was now on sale due to the change of season.

It’s not like his mother could wear it currently, with how cold it is and all, but Eddie still considers spending the rest of his money on it for her. Then, he does a double-take at the figure in the background inside the store. Behind the register talking to a customer is Richie fucking Tozier.

Eddie’s been in this store so many times and hasn’t seen Richie before. He must’ve just gotten the job or Eddie never acknowledged him in there before. Eddie backs away from the window display, intends to go inside the store, but then stops. He turns around and continues on his errand run.

He doesn’t want to bother Richie at work. They’d end up talking for way too long and probably get Richie in trouble. He also can’t risk being late coming home or his mother will think the worst thing has happened to him.

So, Eddie goes into that dreaded Drugstore and gets the prescriptions he needs, and leaves as quickly as he can. He looks back at the store and then starts his walk back home. He thinks to come back for the dress next time, or maybe ask Richie about it.

━━━━━━━━

The week has barely begun, and Eddie already wants to rip his hair out. He’s decent or great in most of his classes, but economics is still (and Eddie is starting to believe always) an issue. He’s good at math, but this is something else.

Another test is coming up on Friday, so he meets with Richie on Wednesday and Thursday.

Wednesday was boring, to Eddie’s dismay. They pretty much did what they always did when Eddie came over to study. Do the work, review the notes till Eddie thinks he might recite them in his sleep, and watch something on television. It’s usually movies that Eddie has admitted to not seeing, Richie gaping at him in shock, and then the VHS being put into the player.

Eddie loves when they do that. Sit on the couch with something Richie grabs from the kitchen and a blanket across the both of them as they sit on either side of the couch. When Richie gets bored mid-movie and starts to play footsie under the blanket till Eddie _has_ to join.

Thursday is different, though.

They’re sitting around the kitchen island finishing up reviewing the notes when there’s a knock at the door. Richie excuses himself to get it and while Eddie keeps writing things down to remember, Richie greets loudly to whoever is on the other side of the front door.

Eddie lifts his head at the footsteps coming into the kitchen.

“Eddie, this is Beverly. Beverly, Eddie!” he gestures between Eddie and the girl next to him.

Eddie feels his stomach drop. It’s the same redhead girl from the photos and the parking lot. She’s even cuter in person. Her eyes are a beautiful blue color and her smile is just as nice as Richie’s. She waves at him, leaves from under Richie’s arm, and goes to Eddie.

“What’s up?” she asks. She peeks at the work and winces, “Econ? Fuck man,” she goes to a cabinet and takes a cup from it. “Richie’s good at that stuff.”

Eddie nods and taps the eraser part of his pencil on the granite, “That’s why I’m here.”

Beverly opens the fridge and pours herself some juice from the container inside. “Smart man, but how can you sit here willingly!”

“Fuck off, Bev,” Richie pushes past her to sling his arm around Eddie. “He’s having a great time hanging out with me.”

Beverly looks at Eddie, “Are you?”

Eddie stares at her, then up at Richie, then back at her, “Minus the homework and dreadful studying, yeah,” he smiles to himself when Richie cheers behind him.

“Alright, now why are you here stealing my drinks?” Richie questions Beverly, sitting back down in his stool at the island.

“I was going to see if you wanted to come to this party going on, but,” Beverly motions towards Eddie. It’s not intentionally rude, but Eddie still shifts uncomfortably from it.

“You can go, I don’t mind,” Eddie says to Richie, then realizes how it sounds. “I mean, not like that, I’m just saying if you wanna go out I’ll head home.” he forces a smile, “I think I’ve got this down for the test.”

Richie watches him, a worried furrow in his brow, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, Richie, I’m sure.”

Then, Richie gets an idea.

“Hey! Why don’t you come with us, huh? I’m sure Bev won’t mind.” he glances at her and she shrugs.

“If you’re into parties.”

 _Who the fuck goes to parties on a Thursday night?_ Eddie thinks. He shakes his head, “I can’t.” it hurts to tell Richie “no” when he looks so hopeful. “My mom would freak the fuck out if I wasn’t home by the time I told her.”

Richie pouts, “Oh, alright.” he puts his things away in a rush, and so does Eddie. 

He tosses his backpack on the ground and runs up the stairs to change quickly. Eddie gets his stuff together on him and waits with Beverly by the front door. He watches the staircase and he can sense Beverly’s eyes on him. He finally gets the courage to look over at her and she’s looking him over, eyes now at his shoes. When her gaze comes back up, she smirks.

“I like your sweater,” she tugs gently at the rough material of his sleeve. “It’s cute. Love the pattern. Where’d you get it?”

“Oh, uh,” he looks down at it, fixing it where it’s tucked into his jeans, and back up at her, “Some store I can’t remember.”

Beverly nods, swaying on the heels of her sneakers. They’re the same kind as Richie’s, Eddie notes to himself, but they’re smaller and not as beat up.

“Might have to get one like it,” she says and winks, grinning.

Eddie can’t hold back the smile that tugs at the corners of his mouth when he looks at her. Not long after, Richie comes jogging down the stairs. He shoves Eddie out the door first and Beverly laughs at the string of curses that come out of Eddie’s mouth in retaliation.

They pull up to the front of Eddie’s house and he thanks Richie, a usual routine, and says goodbye to Beverly. He makes his way up the steps and turns around again to wave at Richie. The curly-haired boy reaches across Beverly to call goodbye again. Beverly slaps him away from her, laughing loudly as he says something that Eddie can’t hear. Eddie doesn’t know what they are necessarily. Dating? Maybe. Best friend? That’s for sure. He tries to not dwell on the first option too much. 

Richie sinks back into his seat, turns the radio all the way up, and rushes off down the road. Eddie sighs at the recklessness and goes inside.

━━━━━━━━

It’s one day after school when Eddie receives his first gift from Richie.

Richie had told him to meet him at his car, despite Eddie needing to be home right away to help at home with chores, and he had the giddiest look on his face; so how could Eddie say no?

Eddie sits on the hood and watches the students come and go. Richie finally appears and he’s hurrying over to Eddie. The car beeps under him and Richie holds his finger up.

“Uno momento, por favor!” he tosses his backpack in through the driver's side and then leans over to grab something from the backseat. 

“That’s not...the right words, but I understand what you mean.”

Richie ignores him and climbs out with a small, plastic brown colored bag and hands it over to Eddie. Eddie raises his eyebrow, looking down at the squared shape. Richie’s bouncing, what seems to be nervously, on his feet. He fidgets with the car keys in his right hand and puts his left into his jacket pocket. He’s watching Eddie closely; his eyes searching his face for a reaction.

Eddie opens up the plastic and pulls out the item.

“Oh, shit,” in his hands is a record. Brand new, sticker still on it and everything. “Richie,” he says, dragging the last of his name out, “what is this?”

Richie smiles, tilting his head. “Uh, Nirvana?”

Eddie rolls his eyes. “I _mean_ why’d you get this?”

“You said you never had records of your own,” he walks over to Eddie and takes the record from his hands to look at it again. “so, felt like getting you one.”

“You don’t need to spend that much money on me, Richie. I don’t want you doing that.”

Richie hands the record back, “I know I don’t. I wanted to do it for you. Plus, you need to update your taste in music.” he chuckles.

“So you get me this?”

“Hey, Nevermind is a masterpiece, alright? Maybe it’ll bring you into the new wave and out of the old!”

“Says the guy who still has a clock on his wall from when he was twelve,”

“There you go again - it’s a good working clock!”

Eddie laughs and puts the record back into the bag. He holds it close and careful to his front. Richie’s smiling at him and his nervous fidgeting has subsided. His leg is still bouncing though, as he always did, and the bottom of his sneaker makes the gravel of the parking lot crack under it. Eddie doesn’t mind it though. It slips past his thoughts and half the time he barely notices him doing it now that he’s become accustomed to it.

“Thank you,” Eddie says, voice soft. “Really, it means a lot.”

“Of course, Eds.” Richie’s smile closes slightly and has a softer edge to it. “Anything I can do to make you happy.”

Richie was always joking with Eddie. Everything he said was a way to pick and prod and Eddie would throw words right back at him. But what Richie said felt genuine. It felt so genuine and kind that it made Eddie’s chest ache.

He rides his bike home with the record in the basket. He hides it under his clothes when he wanders past his mother in the living room and places it down on his desk when he makes it to his bedroom. He takes off the plastic covering and price sticker and saves listening to it for a day when he’s home alone, or maybe when Richie’s over. If that ever happens.

━━━━━━━━

All around the school amongst the posters and class support were flyers for the festival Derry held every fall. It was something Eddie used to go to as a kid with his mother or his old friends. He stopped going when he was older, but it was always fun.

He took the flyer from the wall and reads it over. Then, a thought comes to him. He folds the flyer up and shoves it into his pocket. It’s a crazy idea. Well, no it’s not really. But in Eddie’s mind, it’s more than it is. He walks to his first period and rehearses what to say in his head. He’s got two hours to get it down, and by third period, Eddie hypes himself up in his head about it.

He’s already sitting down when Richie walks in. He spits it out the second Richie places his backpack down to sit.

“Wanna go to the fair on Sunday?” Eddie mentally curses himself for it not being brought up as he rehearsed. Casually throwing it into the conversation Richie always starts when he walks in. Nope. Couldn’t even do that.

Richie thinks on it for not even five seconds before smiling and shrugging, “Sure.”

“Okay,” Eddie breathes out.

“Want me to pick you up?”

Eddie feels something turn in him and that familiar feeling of his face getting hot hits again. He’s just offering a ride to make getting there easier! So, Eddie agrees (obviously) and Richie tells him that he’ll be there at seven. Class starts and Eddie can’t hold back the smile that pushes onto his face. From the plans, Richie answering “yes” right away, he doesn’t know. It’s just him and his new friend going to the fair, what’s the big deal?

He spends his entire Sunday thinking of what to wear. He throws on multiple different things, eventually picking out the most simple long sleeve and jeans he could’ve figured out from the beginning, and waits on his bed, staring at his bedroom clock. When he looks out his window and sees Richie’s car pass by the house (at request so his mother didn’t see him), he leaves and kisses his mother goodbye. He has told her it was for track and that he had to be at practice. Mandatory and all that.

He goes down the block where Richie is parked, and he gets close to the car, Richie rolls down his window and leans over the console to look at him. Eddie waves and hurries into the passenger seat. He buckles up and finally gets a good look at Richie. Despite being at work all day, he still looks awake and enthusiastic as ever. He smiles at Eddie, comments how cute Eddie looks, and guns the engine, peeling out from the curb and down the street towards the fair.

The radio blares Zeppelin from the cassette Richie put in and he sings wildly along. Eddie laughs at his dramatics and lolls his head to the left to look at him. Not only does Richie look good, but the smell of cologne fills Eddie’s scents and adds to the attractiveness of it all. Eddie leans over and lowers the volume and that slightly irks Richie, but he says nothing.

It doesn’t take them long to get there with the speed Richie’s going at. He finds a spot after driving up and down the isles for a few minutes. The loud engine stops rumbling and the radio stops. Eddie thinks it’s the first time Richie’s car has ever had silence.

Richie runs around the other side of the car before Eddie can get out and opens the door, stepping aside with his hand out dramatically, “We have arrived, m’ lady,”

Eddie rolls his eyes and steps out, shoving Richie playfully as he walks by. Richie giggles and shuts the car door. He locks it and runs up to Eddie’s side, slinging his arm around his shoulders. His long legs moving quicker than Eddie’s and Eddie has to force himself to catch up or get dragged.

They walk up to the ticket booth and Richie lets go. There are people in line ahead of them, so Eddie goes to grab the money from his wallet to have it ready ahead of time when Richie stops him.

“I’ve got it,”

“Dude, it’s only five dollars.”

“I know. I’ll pay for it, don’t worry.” Eddie stares at him for a moment. He purses his lips and puts his wallet back into his pocket. When they get up to the booth, Richie leans his arms against the table, “Two please.” he says to the woman. 

He looks at Eddie and smiles at him. It’s soft and warms Eddie up inside. He looks over Eddie’s face, thinking something that Eddie can’t decipher, and sighs.

“What?” Eddie asks, arms crossed.

Richie shook his head, still smiling, “Nothing,” he takes the tickets from the woman. “C’mon, we got games to win.” he grabs Eddie’s hand and drags him out of the line and into the fair.

The fair is crowded with all kinds of people - especially kids from their school. Derry is a small town, but when things like fairs and festivals happen? Everyone has to go. When a town so boring does something remotely interesting it sparks all interest in every kid. There are booths with various games and rides at the farthest part of the park. A Ferris wheel that changes color, vibrant against the jet-black sky, stands out to Eddie. He makes a mental note to go on it last.

Richie guides him through the crowd and they get stuck in the crowd that surrounds the bandstand. A rock band, that is clearly just some teenagers who got this one gig, is up performing. The crowd is loud and it’s exciting to Eddie. He pushes himself closer to Richie as he tries to get past the young people.

Once out of the initial traffic, Richie lets out a huff of relief. He doesn’t push away Eddie who’s still holding closely onto him.

“Where are we going first?”

Richie looks around. He snaps his fingers on his free hand that isn’t holding onto Eddie’s, “Ring toss,”

Eddie raises his eyebrow, “Ring toss?”

“Yeah, come on! The easiest thing to win!”

“Wow, you actually want to win something.”

“Well, duh!” They start walking towards the booth. “What’s the point of a fair if you’re not going to win?”

Eddie doesn’t argue. He watches as Richie goes up against a group of kids and a parent. He smiles at the childish joy on Richie’s face. When he loses, he groans and throws his hands up, making the kid who won laugh. He makes a joke and the kid giggles again. It isn’t hard to like Richie, Eddie knows. He knows how much he likes Richie. How easy it was to click with him and feel comfortable enough to talk about things; joke about anything. Eddie Kaspbrak likes Richie Tozier. He really likes Richie Tozier.

“Kid kicked my ass,” Richie says and frowns when he walks up to Eddie.

Eddie tilts his head, “Did you let him win?”

Richie scoffs, “Yeah! Did you think I’d be an asshole and win?”

“If I’m being honest...yeah,” 

Eddie laughs at Richie’s jaw dropping dramatically at his words. 

“I am not that mean!” Richie shoves at Eddie’s shoulder, then grabs it again and holds his hand there, steadying Eddie, “ _You’re_ the mean one, Eds,’

Eddie tries to think of something to fight back with, but the retort falls away. He just laughs. He keeps laughing, even when Richie keeps rambling and pulling Eddie along. He keeps smiling at everything around him. Every booth, every decoration, every person, the stars in the sky, Richie. He smiles. He feels _happy_ for the first time in a while. And he’s willing to admit that every time Richie grabs his hand to take him to another game booth or try and win him something, it makes him happy.

They went on the Ferris wheel by the end of the night like Eddie wanted. Their cart stops near the top and the sound of Derry below them combined with the creek of the rocking metal. He looks over the view and the joy of people and lights stops right by the parking lot to the fair. Everything after is a sleeping town only illuminated by streetlights and the few cars driving around on the streets. That was the one thing Eddie loved and hated about Derry; how quiet it was.

“I haven’t been to the fair in years,” he tells Richie. “I didn’t realize how much I missed it until now.”

Richie leans his head back and looks up at the stars as he speaks, “I go every year.” he laughs. “Kinda childish but,” he shrugs, “It's a nice way to spend a night.”

Eddie looks at him. “Who were you gonna go with this year?”

“I usually go with my family or a few friends,”

“Why didn’t you invite them to come with us then? I could always go for meeting some new people,” he smiles.

“Because you invited me,” Richie says as he sits up and rests his arms on the railing that holds them in. “Why would I bring in some people you don’t know?”

“I don’t know,” Eddie looks away from Richie’s heavy gaze and back up at the sky.

Richie scoots closer to him. “I like hanging out with you, Eddie.”

Eddie looks down at his feet and swallows back the feeling in his throat. The feeling of Richie pressed up against his right side warm and somewhat comforting. “I like hanging out with you too.”

“I wanted to be with you and you only.” he says and Eddie relaxes at the sight of Richie’s soft smile, “If you wanna meet my friends next time, then I’ll take you to them.”

Eddie nods, caught in his gaze, “I’d like that.”

Richie opens his mouth and closes it a few times, deciding what to say next. But when he comes up with it, Eddie twitches from the shiver that comes over him and distracts Richie completely.

“You cold?”

“Kind of. It’s the wind up here, man,” Eddie chuckles.

Richie shifts back and starts pulling at the sleeves of his sweatshirt, “Here,”

“What-”

He pulls it over his head and fixes his hair, then hands the sweatshirt over to Eddie, “Take it.”

Eddie tries to protest but Richie just shoves it practically into his hands. He watches Richie for a second, studying his face and sees how Richie waits for him to put it on. He sighs and slips the warmth over his head and adjusts it over his body. The sleeves go to the tip of his thumb, and from the way it bunches at his waist, Eddie guesses it probably hangs down by the top of his thighs. He tries not to blush and nods, smiling hoping to hide his expression.

“Better?” Richie asks, but his voice is quieter than usual.

“Yeah, way better,” Eddie crosses his arms over himself and hugs the sweater closer to his body. “Thanks.” he murmurs.

The ride jolts back to moving.

“Of course.” 

The words are barely heard over the noise around them, but Eddie catches it.

Once they get off the ride, they walk back through the thinning crowd to the parking lot. Eddie falls behind Richie as he looks down at the sweater again. His assumption was correct and that only makes the blush from earlier come back. He looks up and jogs to catch up to Richie. Without a second thought, he grabs Richie’s hand on impulse from doing so all night. Richie tenses and looks down briefly at their hands. Eddie is about to pull his hand away when Richie holds it tighter.

He almost slams into Richie when he stops suddenly.

“Dude,” Richie turns to him and points to the souvenir shop.

Eddie laughs, “Why are they selling souvenirs at a fair?”

“No clue, but you gotta get something!”

“I’m okay-“

“No,” Richie lets go of his hand and faces him to make his point as important as he can, “every year us Tozier’s get one souvenir from the shop before we leave.”

Eddie looks past him at the booth, then back at Richie, “I’m not a Tozier, so that’s on you.”

Richie smiles and walks backward, “Doesn’t mean I can’t get you something.”

He spins around and looks the items over. Eddie stands next to him and does the same. Some of them are simple pins and magnets, other hats and shirts, and some different kinds of postcards. Richie picks out one of the magnets for himself, then a pin for Eddie despite his protests. 

He takes it from him and looks down at it. It’s a cartoon beaver holding up a sign that reads _Derry_. He realizes how close Richie is to him when he looks up. He’s staring down at Eddie with a smile on his face like he’s waiting for him to say something about the pin.

“I like it,” Eddie says, eyes darting over Richie’s face, and smiles softly.

“Good,” Richie continues to grin. “‘Cause I can’t give it back.” he laughs.

They finally take their leave and make it to Richie’s car with no more interruptions. Most people have already left, so even the park starts to become as quiet as the rest of the town.

The stereo is lower than usual on the way back to Eddie’s house. Richie isn’t singing along either. Eddie hums the tune of _Pledging My Love_ instead. Richie has been smiling since they left, but his grin is higher on his cheeks when he hears Eddie sing along softly under his breath.

Richie parks by the curb down the street and across from Eddie’s house and the engine rumbles calmly. His hands fall to his thighs and he looks over at Eddie. 

Eddie gets out of the car, “Thank you for tonight,” he whispers.

“Thank _you_ ,” Richie says with a wink.

“Oh, wait,” 

Eddie goes to take the sweatshirt off when Richie reaches across the car to stop him.

“Just give it to me on Monday.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. Looks better on you than me.” Richie says, sitting back into the driver's seat, seemingly oblivious to the pinkening of Eddie’s cheeks. 

Eddie thanks him again, then goes up the steps and opens his front door. He turns around and Richie is watching him. He lifts his hand as a goodbye, the engine starts up again, and Eddie smiles weakly as he waves goodbye. He wants to run back out there and hop into that beat-up Camaro and never come back home. 

But he can’t. 

So, he goes inside hesitantly and makes his way up to his room, shutting the door quietly to not wake up his mother, and gets ready for bed. He sets the pin down onto his nightstand next to the photo of him and his mother. He slips on his pajama pants, keeps Richie’s sweater on, and gets into bed. It’s soft and warm is the argument Eddie gives himself in his head as a defense for wearing the grey sweatshirt. It’s definitely not because it makes him feel warm inside and smells of Richie. Definitely not.

━━━━━━━━

He wakes up for school and doesn’t change out of Richie’s sweater when he gets dressed. He does put on an undershirt, just in case Richie wants it back when he sees him. He goes downstairs to eat breakfast and he almost curses out loud when he sees his mother already in the kitchen. She doesn’t say anything when he walks in, a clear sign that something is wrong.

Eddie pretends to be oblivious to it and pours himself his cereal as usual. He sits down at the small table and begins to eat. He watches his mother as she cooks herself something to eat. Minutes later when she's finished and is sitting across from Eddie, she says something.

“So, Eddie,” she cuts into the omelet, not looking at Eddie, “Where did you go yesterday?”

“I told you. Track practice.”

She makes a _hmp_ sound and shakes her head. “Are you sure, honey?” she finally looks at him. God, he hated when she did that. Made everything more dramatic for him. “Does track practice go on that late at night?”

“Sometimes. It depends on what the coach wants and how hard we work. He likes to congratulate us for hard work sometimes and will get us dinner.” Eddie comes up with the lie quickly.

Sonia hums. She eats like nothing is wrong, but Eddie can barely get down a spoonful of cereal. She doesn’t ask anything else for a while and the tension makes Eddie want to scream at her and rip his hair out. He eventually stands up to empty his bowl in the sink when she speaks into the silence.

“Why do you lie to me, Eddie?”

“What?” he puts the bowl into the drainer with a loud clunk.

“You didn’t go to track practice.” Sonia spins around and stands up with her plate. “I know because I checked.”

Eddie was taken back. His mouth was agape and he couldn’t find the words to say. “Y-you did what?”

“I went to your school,” she said calmly. She washes her plate and lets Eddie gawk at her in shock. “There was no practice for any sport today. Why did you lie?” she wipes her hands off on the towel and slams it onto the counter and Eddie jumps.

“Mom-“

“Eddie, darling,” she moves towards him and he backs up with his hands out defensively, “I’m not going to hurt you. I just want you to explain to me why you keep lying? Why do you go against what I ask of you? You used to be such a good boy, Eddie.”

“Mommy-” he begs.

“Eddie.” her tone becomes harsher. Colder. “Tell me where you went last night. Who’s been driving you around, because I know it’s not the neighbor’s son. Is it that friend you mentioned?”

“No-“

“Is it? It must be. Why are you lying, Eddie?”

“I’m not, I’m not!”

“Then tell me, where you went.”

Eddie’s back hits the archway of the living room, “I went to the fair-“

“With who? A girl?”

“No! No, mom-“

“Oh god,” Sonia closes her eyes and lets out a choked sound. She puts her hand on her heart, “You won’t even tell me about your friends or a girl,” Eddie keeps shaking his head, but it doesn’t help. She scoffs, “You’re breaking my heart!”

Eddie can’t do it. He could not do it. He runs away from her and he already knows she wouldn’t even try to chase him. He grabs his backpack, keys, and runs out the front door. He slams it shut on her screaming voice. The front door opens again and Sonia stomps down the porch steps, screaming after him. 

He runs and runs and doesn’t stop. He keeps running even though he knows she isn’t behind him. He runs even though he knows she won’t go after him at all. He can’t stop, he can’t stop running. He feels tears prick his eyes but the wind keeps drying them up.

There’s a car honk beside him that makes him jump and scream. He looks over with his hand clutching his heart, eyes open wide.

“Sorry!”

Eddie closes his eyes and lets his hand go. “Jesus Christ, Beverly!” he tries to catch his breath from running and the scare. “You can’t just call out my name?”

Beverly is leaning across the middle console, her hand still on the steering wheel of her truck. “I said I was sorry!” she unlocks the car and pushes open the passenger door as best as she can from where she sits. “Get in!”

Eddie looks back to check for his mother again, then hurries inside Beverly’s truck. She makes a giddy noise when he hops in.

“Thanks,” He huffs out through the panting.

“Didn’t want you to have to walk all the way there,” she starts the car up again and begins driving. Eddie observes already that she’s a better driver than Richie. “Why were you running so hard anyway?” she laughs, tossing him a glance.

“Fuck, my mo-“ he stops. He chuckles and plays it off with, “I just woke up late so I thought I was going to be late.”

Beverly still notices the look on Eddie’s face but doesn’t say anything about it. She has music playing so the car isn’t completely silent and Eddie is thankful. She stops at a red light and looks over at him. He looks at her and smiles and she smiles that beautiful smile right back at him.

“Can I ask about something?”

Eddie shrugs, “Alright.”

“Is that Richie’s?”

Eddie’s face feels hot.

“What?”

“The sweater,” she reaches over and pulls at it like she had done to him before. “Richie has the same exact one.” she smirks, “and the same exact weird stain right…” she looks down at the hem and points, “here.”

_Well, there’s no way around that one. Why is this light so fucking long?_

“Uh, yeah, it is.” Eddie nods a little too vigorously and doesn’t look at her. He tries to focus ahead as if he’s checking for the nearby cars. “We went to the fair last night and it was cold and I needed something to wear.”

Beverly moves away from him and leans her elbow on the window, her other hand still on the wheel. She’s got her mouth slightly open with a smirk, eyes narrowed slightly. Eddie looks at her and cocks his eyebrow, confused.

“That is, the _most_ cliche shit,” she starts to laugh, “I have _ever_ heard!”

Eddie’s blush gets worse and he’s sure Beverly can tell because she laughs harder. The light finally turns green and she starts driving again. One less stop away from Eddie getting out of the car and running away from Beverly.

“I’m giving it back-“

“It’s fine, Eddie.” She says, focusing on the road, with a fond smile still on her face. “Keep it. Looks way better on you than him.”

Eddie tries to not laugh, but it sputters out, “A lot of things would look better on other people.” he laughs through the whole thing and Beverly’s loud honking laugh makes him laugh harder. He calms himself down eventually and says, “He looks good in a lot of things, though.” It slips out and Eddie’s embarrassed blush comes back. He whips his head to look at her, “I-I mean that like-“

“Eddie,” She reaches over and pats his thigh. “I know. Richie has his days.” she looks over for a second and winks.

He wants to make another excuse, but Beverly turns the radio up and continues driving without saying anything else to Eddie. It’s cue for him to not make things worse. 

She doesn’t bring it up again. Not even when they get to school and they see Richie in the parking lot. Not when he makes a joke about how cute Eddie looks in his clothes. She doesn’t even say anything when she notices Richie still staring at Eddie with a hungry look in his eyes. She just acknowledges it, keeping a mental note of it so she can say _I told you so,_ if anything happens later.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie curls up on one edge of the couch and situates the pillow between his legs for comfort. He watches Richie, who is squatting in front of him and looking through the cabinet next to the television. He’s digging through the VHS tapes to try and find the right movie.

“Aha!” Richie snaps his fingers and takes out one of the movies. He holds the tape up and smiles. Big as his eyes behind those iconic glasses.

Eddie tilts his head, “Nosferatu?” he chuckles. “Isn’t that a little old?”

“Yeah, but a classic! A must watch,” Richie gets up and rewinds the tape. He presses play and throws himself onto the couch, hitting Eddie in the process, and rests his feet on the coffee table.

Eddie tips towards Richie when he sits down, but he doesn’t move away. Richie grabs the chips from the table and tries to munch on them as quietly as he can. Eddie grabs some from the bag, not because he’s hungry, but because it’s there and when watching a movie he can’t not have a snack. It’s just an unspoken movie watching rule.

And he’s also bored from the movie itself and is eating as a distraction. Classic, but it doesn’t mean entertaining. Richie gets up suddenly and Eddie doesn’t realize how much he’s leaning against him till he almost falls over from him leaving his spot.

He turns around to look over the back of the couch and watch him. Richie shoves the school supplies towards the edge of the island to make room. He digs through the cabinet and comes out with a packet in his hand. He leans around the corner and holds it up with raised eyebrows.

“Want popcorn?” Eddie nods, hands under his chin, and a smile on his face. Richie stands there without saying anything and Eddie mimics him with the same raised eyebrows. Richie blinks at him and gives him a smile and a wink, “Will do, Eddie,” then he disappears around the corner again.

Eddie sits properly in the middle of the couch and tries to focus on the movie. He pulls the pillow to his chest and smiles behind it. He could’ve sworn he saw Richie blush, he doesn’t know why he did, but Eddie is sure that he did.

The sound of the microwave going hums softly over the quiet scenes of the movie and he almost falls asleep from the mix of slow movie and easy noise. 

He jumps when Richie is next to him again with the filled bowl. He’s smooshed up against Eddie’s side and places the bowl on top of his and Eddie’s thighs. Richie stares ahead at the movie and Eddie glances at him quickly and puts a handful of popcorn into his mouth.

As the movie drags on Eddie leans his head on the back of the couch and groans, “Richie,” he lulls his head to look at him. “This is fucking boring.”

“It’s not boring you just don’t appreciate the classics!”

“I do appreciate classic movies, but they can be boring!” Eddie sits up and moves the bowl onto the table. “And this one is boring!” he sits cross-legged on the couch, facing Richie.

Richie stops the tape with the remote and tosses it next to him on the couch. “Okay, fine,” he puts an arm across the back of the couch and rests his cheek against his shoulder. “What would you rather watch then, hm?”

“Anything but a black and white horror flick from the eighteen hundreds,”

“Nineteen twenties, actually-“

“Whatever!” Eddie shoves Richie and flops onto his back against the pillow. He puts his legs across Richie’s lap and folds his arms behind his head. “We can watch Halloween. That’s a classic _and_ a good one.”

“If I have it, sure,” he puts his hands on Eddie’s ankles and sits up. “Oh! That reminds me! I was gonna ask you,” he shifts in his seat but doesn’t let go of Eddie, “There’s a Halloween party happening and I wanted to see if you wanted to come? Bev and I are going and some of my other friends are gonna be there.”

Eddie taps his chin, purses his lips towards his cheek, “Hmm...I don’t know…”

Richie groans, “Come on!” He moves closer to Eddie, throwing Eddie’s legs behind him and scoots up to his waist. “Please, Eds?” he puts his hands together in a praying motion. He pouts and bats his eyelashes.

Eddie puts his foot on Richie’s chest to push him away slightly, “Only if you don’t call me Eds.” he smirks.

Richie rolls his eyes, “Okay, _Eddie_ , please come with me to the Halloween party?”

“Yes, I would love to be your plus one.” Eddie smiles at the joy on Richie’s face.

“I’ll pick you up at your place. Eight o’clock sharp.”

“Deal.”

“Wear the cutest costume you got,” Richie leans in closer to Eddie and Eddie’s heart feels like it might burst out of his chest. He stares up at him with wide eyes and Richie has a sultry smile on his face. “or the sluttiest you can find.”

Eddie swats at him and Richie lets out a loud laugh. He gets up off of Eddie and stands up. Eddie watches him walk over to the television to take out the tape. His sweatpants hang low on his hips and his shirt had risen from moving around the couch so much. Eddie looks at the dimples of his lower back and swallows back the feeling in his throat. Richie scratches the spot he was staring and pulls the shirt down to cover it.

“Alright,” Richie puts the movie back in the case and swaps it out for Halloween. He turns around and shows it to Eddie, “Happy?”

“Very.” Eddie giggles.

Richie puts the tape into the player and waits for it to rewind. “You’re lucky you’re cute,” he mutters, but Eddie catches it.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie spends the entire week trying to come up with what to wear. His mother stopped buying him costumes after fifth grade and he hasn’t been out trick or treating since his Uncle left town, so he had nothing. He managed to find some change lying around the house and some from his stash of savings and goes to the second-hand store in the shopping center by the central. It’s too close to Halloween for any good costumes and he’s got limited options. He needs something simple, obvious, and practical. There isn’t anything worth his while so he makes his move to the party store across the way. The second he’s in the aisles he figures it out.

Now he’s walking down the street and getting into Richie Tozier’s car with a headband on his head that has red plastic horns glued to them, his black button-up with a red vest over it, black slacks, a tiny plastic pointed red staff and black dress shoes.

“A devil, huh?” Richies asks him as he looks Eddie over. Richie has his curls slicked towards the center on the top of his head, his glasses perched higher up on the bridge of his nose, and a striped blue suit with a red tie and clean white shirt under, tucked neatly into his black slacks. “You’re more of an angel to me, Eds.”

Eddie rolls his eyes, “We’re gonna be late, _Mister Buddy Holly_.”

Richie laughs, “Glad you caught on!” he pulls away from the curb and they drive at a faster speed than they should go to the party. He smirks at Eddie, “Still looking good though,” he winks and Eddie can’t tell if its a joke or not with the way he laughs after he says it.

Richie parks further down the road to avoid his car being so close to the source of the booming music and a young crowd walking in and out of the house at the end of the street. It’s decorated in the Halloween spirit and the second they get closer and the louder the music gets, Eddie wants to flee. But he can’t when Richie grabs his hand when he notices Eddie slowing down and forces him to walk at his pace. Long limbs going in a joyous stride as they pass a few teens sitting on the lawn and up the porch and into the house.

All the main house lights are turned off and the only source is from the purple ones on the floor and hanging around the ceiling. There is a group of people dancing to the music on the makeshift dance floor in the living room and all the furniture is either outside or pushed to the sides. The first thing Eddie notices about the teenagers is their costumes and he doesn’t know if he should laugh or stare. Some of the guys and girls are dressed in regular looks, others in joke costumes, and a good majority in revealing costumes that Eddie can just tell are fucking freezing to be in. 

Richie guides him to the kitchen and low and behold, pouring herself a drink, is Beverly Marsh. She turns when Richie comes up next to her and scares her into jumping and almost spilling her beer. She punches him playfully in the stomach and he laughs through the grunt.

Her costume is almost too obvious. She has a cheap black witches hat on her head and a long black dress on. It cuts down into a v-line and to cover up the exposed chest, she has a row of silver necklaces hanging to match the vibe of her costume. Her makeup is done and she looks even more beautiful than usual. It’s funny to Eddie how pretty he finds her in a shitty Halloween costume.

“Where’s Bill?” Richie asks her, yelling over the music.

“Didn’t come!”

“What!?”

“Yeah! Said he had to babysit his brother tonight!”

Richie groans and grabs a drink for himself. He grabs one for Eddie, like an impulse, and Eddie takes it, smiling thank you. Richie cracks open the can and mixes it with the punch he poured for himself. He swishes the red cup around and takes a sip. He smacks his lips together and Eddie shakes his head.

“Foul,” Richie tells him. “So foul, but! It will work!”

Then a guy comes up behind Beverly with Eddie’s friend Mike next to him. From the reaction Richie gives when he sees the two, Eddie puts it together that they’re friends.

Mike hugs Richie then sees Eddie beside him. “Oh shit!” he pushes Richie away and moves to Eddie, pulling him into a hug tighter than Richie’s. “Eddie! What’s up, man?” He’s laughing and smiling so wide and he’s happy and Eddie is happy to see him. It eases him to see Mike Hanlon and he sighs. 

“Partying, that’s what’s up,” Eddie smiles at him.

Mike laughs loudly again, “Fucking right!” he clinks his cup to Eddie’s beer and he takes a sip while Mike chugs his cup down.

Richie slings his arm around Mike’s shoulders. Richie is tall, but not as tall as Mike, maybe shorter by two inches or three, but the sight of him reaching _up_ instead of down is funny to Eddie.

“Didn’t know you knew ol’ Mikey here!”

Richie takes down his drink and hands it behind himself, an unspoken gesture for Beverly to refill it. Eddie is surprised to see her do it without question.

“Yeah, we’re on track together.”

Richie gasps, “I’m a fucking idiot!”

“We know,” Eddie and Mike say in unison, both laughing at the shock of aligning the same words.

Richie ignores them and keeps going, “I should’ve put two and two together! Oh my god!” he laughs and lets go of Mike. “Alright,” he leans in between Eddie and Mike, “Who’s the faster runner? Huh? Be honest.”

Mike actually thinks about it when Eddie says Mike anyway. Whether it’s true or not he will always say Mike.

“Eddies’ pretty fast…”

“Mmhmm…” Richie nods, listening, waiting for some catch.

“But…” Mike’s serious expression turns into a full-blown big toothy grin, “I’m still the fastest runner in the damn town, baby!”

Richie cheers dramatically and the two high five. Eddie laughs and Mike pulls him to his side. He raises his cup and the three take down their drinks.

Eddie learns halfway through the night that the other man with them is a boy named Ben and that he is also Richie, Beverly, and Mike’s friend. There’s also another boy they find on the dancefloor named Stanley who is another one of Richie’s many friends. He’s dancing with some girl and she’s more adorable than pretty and Eddie likes her. She’s sweet when she talks and even when she dances. They have matching costumes and Eddie has to admit he finds it cute.

Richie went off somewhere with Beverly, so Eddie sticks with Mike and his new friends. Ben is staring at the backdoor, swaying to _Thriller_ rather than dancing like the rest of the crowd. Eddie looks to Mike to try and understand and he leans down.

“Got this thing for Bev,” Mike explains directly into his ear. Ben wouldn’t be able to hear him even if he screamed it at Eddie, but he still murmurs it like a secret. “Whenever she leaves with Richie to smoke he gets all paranoid.”

Eddie shrugs, “I get it...kind of?”

Mike chuckles and continues to dance. He turns around, grabs Ben, and forces him to dance with the four of them. Eddie grabs Ben’s hands and gets him into the groove of the beat as best he can. Ben eventually gives in and the girl Stanley is dancing with grabs onto him, and the happiness in her laugh and smile seems to help him feel better. At least enough to be distracted.

The second the song ends and _Time Warp_ starts, Beverly and Richie are slamming through the door.

“This song is my shit!” Richie yells and Beverly jumps onto his back. He carries her into the crowd and then they disappear again. The last thing Eddie sees is Beverly laughing and Richie cheering.

Eddie feels the alcohol hit as he sways his head to the music. He smiles and suddenly there’s someone on him. He opens his eyes that he didn’t notice fell shut and in front of him is a girl he doesn’t recognize. She has blonde hair and the most revealing nurse costume he’s ever seen. She pulls him into the dance and he lets her. She’s singing the words under her breath and Eddie just moves with her. He doesn’t know what he’s doing but he can’t seem to care. He’s hot and the bodies around him are too much. 

He looks up from where he’s been staring down at her grinding up on him and across the floor, past the dancing people, is Richie. Beverly is no longer with him and he’s got his hands on some brunette.

Eddie watches them closely while his partner continues to move him. Richie is pressed up close to her, the two singing the words practically into each other’s mouths, and Richie turns them to the side to dance with the music. Eddie can’t stop staring. He tries to stop, he really does, but he can’t.

The brunette grabs Richie’s face at the same time the blonde grabs Eddie’s. It almost lands perfectly on beat with the chorus and Eddie feels like his entire body is exploding internally. He doesn’t know what to focus on and the music is pounding now. He finds Richie again and almost stills against the girl he’s kissing when he sees Richie is already watching him.

He’s smirking as the brunette trails from his lips to the corner to his cheek and down to his jawline. His eyes are hooded - from the alcohol, pot, exhaustion, lust, Eddie can’t tell from where he’s standing - and he looks over Eddie. It makes Eddie pull away from the blonde and apologize to her when she stares up at him in confusion. He makes the mistake of looking at Richie again. Richie has got one of his big hands cupping the brunette's cheek and he’s kissing her this time, but his eyes are wide open and staring at Eddie.

If Eddie wasn’t already sweating and hot from dancing, he would definitely be now.

He excuses himself from the blonde, apologizing again, and shoves his way through the crowd into the kitchen. He doesn’t know where his friends are and he can’t find the place to care. He downs a cup quickly of whatever the hell is in the punchbowl and continues it relentlessly. One after another until he feels fuzzy enough.

Hours later, the party is still going somehow, and Eddie is _hammered_. Eddie eventually finds Ben with Beverly in the backyard. He stumbles down the steps but Ben catches him. Eddie laughs and Ben looks at him in concern.

“Where’s Richie?” Eddie pouts, leaning on Ben.

Beverly shrugs, a cigarette between her fingers. Ben helps Eddie sit down next to them on the porch and he groans. He bounces his leg and sways without noticing. Ben reaches over and holds him still.

Then there are footsteps and jumping down in front of them is Richie. Richie stretches, about to say something, when the gasp Eddie lets out scares him shitless. He jumps and his eyes are wide. He no longer has his suit jacket or tie. His hair is a mess again and the button-up is open and stuck to his skin from sweat. 

Eddie thinks he could eat him alive. That’s normal right?

“Holy shit,” Richie laughs. He sobered up from the last time they saw each other. “You’re fucked up.”

Ben puffs out his cheeks and huffs, “You think?”

Eddie pushes himself up and off the porch, almost losing his balance, and makes his way over to Richie. He smiles and clings onto Richie, “You’re my best friend, you know that?” he says, mumbling into Richie’s chest.

Richie keeps his arms under and around Eddie to support him. “Am I really?”

“Mmhmm,” Eddie looks up at him, chin resting on his chest, and smiles. “Bestest friend ever,” he says, then turns his cheek again and hugs Richie tighter.

Richie pats his back soothingly and looks to Beverly. She has her arms crossed and there is a look of amused sympathy. He mouths to her, pleading, but that just makes her laugh at him struggling.

“You feel so good, Richie,” Eddie slurs out and sighs happily.

Richie’s eyes widen and Beverly sputters out her laughter. She covers her mouth in an attempt to stop it but fails. Ben forces his lips into a thin line but the smile still curves the corners of his mouth. Richie stares straight ahead, not moving.

“I, uh,” Richie thinks on what to say. His mind goes blank and Beverly laughs even harder in the short distance. “I really don’t know what to say to that.”

“You’re supposed to say something hot back,” Beverly whispers to him with a wink.

Richie flips her off the best he can and she giggles. Eddie sways a bit on his feet and stands taller, gripping onto Richie more for support.

“Wanna go,” he whines.

“Alright,” Richie says almost immediately. “Best we go!” he tries to walk but Eddie doesn’t let up.

“Bye, Bevvy! Bye, Ben!” Eddie says, waving his hand towards the two.

“Bye, Eddie!” She drags his name out and waves back. Ben just lifts his hand as to say goodbye, and gives Richie a look that would mean “good luck.”

She grabs Eddie’s hand before they go and whispers in his ear something Richie can’t hear, but he can feel Eddie giggle against him. Richie attempts to walk again, more like a waddle, with Eddie still attached to his front with an iron grip.

“Okay, new plan!” 

Richie releases Eddie from himself and Eddie sways on his feet slightly from the motion. Richie squats down, wraps his arms around Eddie’s thighs, lifts him, and holds him against himself. Eddie immediately wraps his arms around Richie’s neck on instinct and laughs, resting his chin on top of Richie’s head.

“This is _wayyyy_ better,” Eddie says, curls bouncing as Richie walks.

“Yeah, you’re telling me.” Richie huffs and makes his way as fast as he can out the door.

The second he gets to his car, he flings open the passenger side, places Eddie down gently into the seat, and rolls down the window in preparation. Just in case. He buckles Eddie up and shuts the door. He jogs to the other side and starts the car as soon as he’s in.

On the drive to the Tozier house, he continues to look over at Eddie for any signs of possible vomiting. He _seems_ happy. Eddie has been smiling the entire night and laughing at everything Richie says. Alcohol is a powerful fucking thing.

“Hey, Rich?” Eddie lulls his head to the left to look at Richie.

“What is it, Eds?”

Eddie bites his lip and shifts in the seat closer to Richie, his body hitting the center console, “Why’d you do that earlier?”

“Why’d I do what earlier?”

“Look at me like…” He inhales sharply, “like _that_.”

Richie looks at Eddie when they get to a stop sign and takes in Eddie’s expression. His half-lidded eyes and the way the corners of his mouth are turned up just slightly to form a sly smirk. Eddie raises his eyebrow, expecting an answer.

It takes longer than it should. Eddie frowns. Why is Richie so shy all of the sudden?

“I don’t remember.” Richie mumbles.

Then he’s speeding again and they’re finally at the Tozier house. He carries Eddie into the house and tries to be as quiet as possible when they go up the stairs. Eddie is quiet and Richie is surprised at that. Usually, Eddie is talking up a storm sober.

Richie gets the door to his bedroom shut and lets Eddie down. Eddie moseys on over to the bed and falls face first down onto the comforter. Richie sighs and starts to undress to get into his pajamas. When he turns around to dig through the pile on his chair, he hears a poorly done whistle and he whips around. Eddie is staring at him. The boy chuckles, but the sound is odd from the way his chin is pressing into his collarbone.

“Like what you see?” Richie jokes, swiveling his hips and laughs quietly. He takes off his slacks and replaces them with his sweats.

Eddie doesn’t say anything. He smiles softly and watches shirtless Richie walk over to him. He lets Richie undress him. He lets himself be sat up and get clothes that aren’t his put onto his body. Too big of clothes that don’t smell like home. Or maybe they do. Eddie can’t decide that right now.

Then he’s being laid down onto his side where the pillows are, and Richie turns off the lamp on the nightstand. Eddie looks at the clock. It’s two in the morning. He suddenly feels sleepy just from looking at the time. Richie climbs over him and slips under the covers behind Eddie. He slips his arm over Eddie’s middle and presses his face into the back of Eddie’s neck. Eddie doesn’t react. Richie mutters something to him and then the room is filled with silence. Eddie wants to react. He knows he should, but he’s too drunk and fuzzy and...comfortable. He leans further back into Richie’s arms and lets his eyes fall shut.

He sleeps better that night than he ever has in his bed.

━━━━━━━━

The door swings open and the sound of it slamming against the wall makes both Richie and Eddie wake up. Richie groans, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

“Beverly is on the phone,” Maggie tells him. She looks at the two boys, holds her gaze on a disorientated Eddie, then looks back at her son, “Says she wants to talk to you.”

Richie reaches across Eddie and puts his glasses on. “Be down in a second, ma.”

Maggie leaves but doesn’t shut the door as she goes.

Richie sighs and drops his head down back onto the pillow behind Eddie. Eddie rolls over onto his back and stares up at the ceiling. A young Rob Lowe stares down at him and Eddie’s hands clutch the blanket. He tries to ignore how close and warm Richie is next to him.

“Rich,” Eddie croaks out through his sore voice. “What happened last night?”

Richie lifts his head and smiles fondly and sleepily, “You got shitfaced and I didn’t want you to go home like that.”

Eddie builds the nerve to roll his head to the side to look at Richie. The second he does he now understands how close they are. His nose is almost touching Richie’s and Richie’s shoulder is on top of his own. His chin is resting on top of Eddie and he’s got a hand across his stomach.

“Richie,” Eddie whispers.

“Eddie,” Richie hums.

His mouth is open as he tries to think of what to say. He’s still drunk he has to be because he’s _really_ tempted to kiss Richie right now. He wants to kiss him so hard that he feels fireworks. He wants to wrap his entire body around those lanky limbs and put his fingers in those curls that no matter how many times Eddie tries to unknot, still get tied up together.

Eddie’s eyes dart quickly down to Richie’s lips and back up to his eyes. Richie is watching him closely. Way too intensely to be friendly. Eddie moves his head closer and then -

“Gotta go talk to Bev,” Richie blurts out. 

He gets up and almost trips as he gets out of bed. Eddie doesn’t have time to react before Richie is already gone. He hears Richie talking and the conversation is muffled through the walls.

Eddie sits up and picks at a stray string from the blanket. The blue sleeve catches his eye. He blinks and looks down at the clothes he’s wearing. He jumps up and moves over to the mirror on the wall. The sight of the baggy clothes that don’t belong to him is all he can focus on. Not how bad his hair looks or the dark circles or how red his eyes are. He can’t stop looking at Richie’s clothes on his body eating him up.

“Fuck.” Eddie sighs. He looks down at the sweats and tugs them up, tying it tight around his waist. “Fuck me, Eddie, damn,” he tries to fix his hair as best as he can and drags himself out of Richie’s room.

He gets down the stairs with heavy steps and rubs his eyes as he walks into the kitchen. Richie is leaning against the wall with the phone in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. Maggie is cleaning up her dishes and puts them into the drying rack. She turns around and smiles softly at Eddie.

“Want anything to eat, honey?”

Eddie sits down onto one of the island stools, “Uh, could I have some toast? If that’s not too much?”

Maggie waves a dismissive hand, “Nothing is too much for me.” she then grabs the bread from its holder and starts to cook.

Eddie looks over at Richie and tugs at the end of his sleeves. Richie is mumbling, keeping his voice low as he speaks to Beverly. He takes a sip of the coffee with an annoyed expression on his face. Eddie’s eyes go to his bare chest without thinking twice.

He’s not extremely built, but he has enough muscle and tone that Eddie locks his gaze onto it. The prominent line of his hips that point along with the black coarse hair into the sweatpants that hang far too low. Eddie’s eyes trail down further and then he snaps out of it when a plate is put down onto the table in front of him.

He jumps at the loud clank and whips his head around. Maggie smiles at him and then she grabs her keys from where they sit on the island. As she passes she lingers a hand on Eddie’s shoulder. The warmth is gone and so is she. She kisses Richie on his cheek as she heads out. The front door shuts with her exit and Eddie eats his toast in silence.

The phone is put back onto its holder on the wall and Richie comes up behind Eddie. He puts both his arms on Eddie’s shoulders and lets his hands hang over his chest. He rests his chin on top of his head and closes his eyes.

Eddie slowly tilts his head back to look up at Richie. Richie looks down and gives Eddie that stupidly fond smile he keeps doing as of late.

“Hi?” Eddie says with a cocked brow, taking a bite of his toast.

Richie takes the half-eaten toast from Eddie’s hand and moves back. Eddie rolls his eyes as Richie makes his way around the kitchen and eats Eddie’s breakfast. He picks up the coffee cup that he put down on the counter by the fridge and washes the toast down with it.

“I gotta get you home,” Richie tells him. “Your mom probably thinks you’re dead already, so.”

Eddie nods and smiles behind his final bite. “Don’t want to face her wrath so early in the morning.” he sauntered over to Richie and took the mug from his hand. He drinks from it, eyes dopey and wide, trying. Then the liquid touches his tongue and he sputters, “The fuck is this?”

“Coffee.”

“A shitty excuse for it!” Eddie looks down into the contents. “Dude is there not an ounce of sweetener or even sugar? Fucking straight black?”

Richie shrugs. “Need it like that to wake me up.”

Eddie hands it back willingly and cleans his pallette by drinking his orange juice.

“But seriously,” Eddie moves back into Richie’s space. “Could you drive me home around lunch?”

“Of course, Spegheads,” he ruffles Eddie’s hair and smiles.

They both make their way to the living room and end up on the couch watching daytime television. Shows that are on early because no one would willingly unless you’re over the age of sixty, watch them.

“What did Bev want?” Eddie asks out of nowhere.

“Just wanted to see if we’re alive.”

Eddie chuckles, “How is she doing?”

“Probably still drunk,” Richie flips through the channels with a smile on his face.

Eddie looks over at Richie and catches his smile. Richie meets his gaze and raises his eyebrows. Eddie shakes his head, then faces the television screen again. He pushes his face under the collar of the sweater and puts the bottom hem up and over his knees to cover the ironic cold he feels over a situation that makes his cheeks heat up. He tries to be as subtle as he can as he scoots closer to Richie. Richie places his hand over the top of Eddie’s foot and doesn’t say anything about it. Just watches the shitty reality show with a tired look in his eyes.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie spends his birthday out of the house as much as possible. He accepts the simple gift and kiss on the cheek from his mother either way. Eats the birthday breakfast his mother always made and leaves for school. He hated going to school on his birthday, but anything to get out of the claustrophobic box called home is something.

Everyone who knows says their wishes and he says thank you with a forced smile. It’s what he expects every year. But what he isn’t ready for is the way Richie runs at him and practically tackles him with the force of his hug. He sways them back and forth and sings a horrible rendition of happy birthday in the deepest voice he can muster up into Eddie’s ear.

“Alright, alright,” Eddie giggles and pushes Richie back.

Richie squeezes his arms and his smile doesn’t seize, “We’re _so_ going to lunch today. I gotta spoil you!”

“Richie-“

“-Nope! Birthday boy gets everything good I can provide!” Richie slings his arm over Eddie’s shoulders and pulls him to the group’s spot by the planter.

Beverly hands Eddie a bundle of balloons and a card with his name scribbled across it shoved inside a gift bag.

“Happy birthday, Eddie,” she says and her hug is tight but not as forceful as Richie’s.

Eddie looks down at the bag, “You didn’t have to get me anything,”

“I know,” Beverly smiles softly, “But I felt you needed at least _something_.”

“I’ll open it later,” he tells her with a grin and holds onto its handles.

Not too long after, the rest of their friends show up and repeat the same routine Eddie has had all day. While he talks to Bill about his plans, he notices from the corner of his eye the way Richie keeps looking at him. He’s talking with Mike and Beverly, standing between them, but only looking at Eddie while he talks. Eddie turns his gaze to Richie for a second, they hold it, and Richie smirks. His stomach gets tight and he looks away, focusing back onto Bill and what he says.

And if his heart aches when Richie gives him his gift after their lunch, Richie doesn’t have to know. The way his stomach flips when Richie smiles at him like he’s so excited about the reaction of when Eddie opens it. It came with a cheesy card that Richie totally picked out on purpose and inside covered in his handwriting. He reads the paragraph; rolling his eyes, laughing, and almost crying out of how genuine it is. It’s so Richie that it hurts.

Underneath the white tissue paper is two wrapped items. One is a book titled guide to economics and Eddie smacks Richie’s arm with it. Richie laughs and tells him to open the real gift, the second present inside. Eddie tears off the paper and reveals the tiny plastic cassette holder. Written on the lines is the title _For Eddie_ with a heart and smiley face.

“A mixtape,” Richie explains to him. “D-do you like it?”

Eddie looks up and he can’t stop smiling. His cheeks start to hurt with how hard he’s smiling. He jumps across and wraps his arms around Richie’s neck.

“Do I? Rich, I haven’t even listened to it yet and I love it already.” Eddie says into his neck.

Richie rubs his back as they hug and he sighs into it. “I’m glad. I had to avoid putting joke songs on it but,” he reluctantly pulls away from Eddie and smiles, “I put all the songs I could on there. Ones you need to hear, some that are just really fucking good, and ones that remind me of you.”

“Rich…” Eddie says it so soft it pulls at Richie’s heartstrings for sure, and he holds the mixtape to his chest. “Thank you. Really, thank you.”

“Anything to make this birthday the best you’ve ever had.”

“It is.”

Richie smiles at him and helps clean up the mess of his presents. They hug again and this time, Eddie hugs him tighter and holds on for a second longer.

━━━━━━━━

The television flickers different pictures as Richie flips through the channels. He’s been doing it for a minute now with the same unsatisfied look on his face. Eddie is pressed up against him, close enough to call it cuddling with how Richie’s arm was draped across the back of the cushions and with his hand resting on Eddie’s shoulder. His fingers move up against the side of his neck, playing with the hair behind his ear. It made Eddie’s skin prick up and feel hot all at the same time.

Eddie loves when Richie plays with his hair. Even if it’s to mess it up with a noogie or putting his hands on his head to make it’s neat part come into one mess of curls from a simple ruffing. Richie’s hands in his hair and fingers twirling around strands are enough to send him into a state of euphoria.

But his annoyance for Richie not picking a damn show is blocking any of that from happening.

“Richie just fucking pick something.”

“There’s nothing good on!”

“Who cares! Just put something on and let’s deal with it. We can even make fun of how bad some of these shows are.”

The television goes black and Richie is moving away from Eddie. Eddie is about to protest when Richie tosses the remote onto the coffee table, goes to the front entrance, grabs his keys, and slips on his shoes he left by the door. He picks up Eddie’s and hands them to him. Eddie stares at the pair, confused, and Richie nudges them closer, expecting him to put them on.

“I want to show you something.”

“ _What_ exactly?” Eddie asks, tone flat as he puts on his sneakers.

Richie simply smiles at him, patiently waiting for Eddie. “You’ll see. Nothing bad or illegal, I promise.” he holds up three fingers, “Scouts honor.” Eddie laughs and gets up once he finishes tying his other shoe.

They don't speak during the drive. It’s odd for them to not share a song or talk about something during a drive. The silence is different. Different, but nice. Richie looks like he knows where they're going, and Eddie doesn't have the energy to ask.

When Richie pulls off the main road onto a small dirt path, Eddie sits up in his seat. The headlights of the car paint the ground in white, leaves and branches reaching for them as the car hobbles over potholes. Trees hanging over them like a dark blanket, blocking out the sky.

"It's a dead-end street." Richie’s voice is low in the darkness. "Used to lead to this cabin, but it burned down. I used to ride my bike over here when I didn’t feel like going to school or home.” he smirks, “Now I drive up here when I just want to be alone. Peace and quiet. One with nature and all that shit.”

Eddie doesn't reply. He could make a joke about how Richie is never quiet, but it doesn’t fit the moment at all. It doesn’t fit how vulnerable Richie seems right at this moment. The branches knock against the sides of the car.

"It's nothing special," Richie adds, after a moment. "Just, like, it's a good place to get away, you know? Better in the summer, though."

Eddie hums and nods. Still no words he can come up with to say that wouldn’t sound stupid in comparison to the quiet confession coming from Richie.

The car pulls to an abrupt halt, and Richie must have been here several times because Eddie probably would have missed the broken fence and fallen down warning sign. It’s only a foot high and ends the road right before the cliff’s edge. The trees break away at this point; like an opened door. The orange and pink of the sunset illuminating the inside of the car and coloring the environment around them beautifully. Richie switches off the lights, and suddenly the sunset is even brighter. There is nothing but silence around them and a lone cricket chirps somewhere in the distance.

"Hey," Richie whispers, turning his head.

Eddie swallows and blinks. "Hey," he replies, voice catching in his throat somehow.

Richie smiles softly. His hands fall from the wheel and into his lap. He moves them up and down, staring straight ahead, licking his lips as he thinks, and Eddie watches every detail of it. Eddie finds words before Richie can.

“Why did you want to talk to me?” his question is as soft as a whisper, but with how quiet everything is, Richie hears him and looks over. “At school. That first week. Why did you want to hang out with me after a few days of knowing me?”

“‘Cause.”

It’s not the answer Eddie wants.

“Seriously,” Eddie pushes on. “It’s not like I made some big statement in class, made a joke, or did anything to make you want to be my friend.”

Richie shrugs. “You were the new kid and I thought you’d want someone to talk to.”

“Okay…” Eddie narrows his eyes. He doesn’t know why he can’t take that answer when it makes sense. It’s the one he doesn’t want, and he knows Richie. That’s not it. It can’t be the only thing.

Richie chuckles, “Want the full reason?”

“Yes! I mean - yes. Yes, I want the full reason why you decided the second you sat down I was going to be your best friend.”

Richie shifts in his seat to turn as best as he can towards Eddie. He looks over his face then tears his gaze away to the tree that pokes out to the disappearing sun. It will be dark soon.

“I really did want you to have a good friend since you were new, that isn’t a lie or anything. Usually, I’d let the new kid go once they found _way_ better friends than me or just weren’t liking me or I wasn’t liking them, but,” he smiles and huffs out a laugh through his teeth. “You were just so…” he looks over at Eddie with his nose scrunched up, “cute. Hot, sexy, handsome, beautiful - I don’t know - any fucking word to describe someone who you want to be around for a while. I knew - I said to myself, Richie Tozier you are going to talk to this cute boy and let's hope he likes you and wants you to be his friend and maybe he’ll fall in love with you like a Disney movie! Now, me admitting that might ruin everything we have going here, I know, but I needed to get that out. It took me a while to consider even telling you but fuck, Eddie, I really like you. Love you even.” he looks down at the center console and sighs. “I know, being in Derry and all, shit like this doesn’t happen - can’t happen, but I just wanted to let you know that. So it didn’t feel like I was hiding something from you or was trying to get something out of you.” he laughs nervously, avoiding Eddie’s stare as much as he can, “Brought you here to my favorite spot in all of this shitty town, the most beautiful place I know, because you deserve to be here. You deserve to know about places to go when you want to feel at ease and have friends who can come here with you and talk about god knows what.” he finally looks up and Eddie’s eyes are wide. From shock, confusion, disgust - maybe all of the above. Richie wants to get out of the car and run, or maybe cry. “I know this is a lot, I’m sorry. I-If you want to stop talking to me or don’t want me speaking to you again that’s fine, I understand, just let me-“

Eddie leans over the separation and drags Richie into a kiss.

It's uncomfortable with the gear stick pressing into his stomach, but Richie tastes of smoke and gum, and that's better, so much better than anything he could’ve asked for. He’s never done it before, it’s clumsy and feels incredible and awkward all the same time. But with Richie, he feels like he knows this dance. Like he has kissed Richie a hundred times before. Are past lives and soulmates a real thing? Sure seems like it.

When Eddie pulls Richie closer, Richie comes easily, almost as if he's handing control to Eddie for the moment. Eddie squeezes his eyes shut so tightly he sees bright sparks behind his lids. He shudders when Richie’s tongue tickles the roof of his mouth.

"Backseat," Richie suggests, after what might have been minutes or hours - Eddie has lost track.

"Yeah," Eddie mumbles, "okay," there’s a panic building in his gut, but Richie is right there, so he tilts his head to kiss Richie harder, twining one hand in Richie’s hair and stroking over the short hairs at the base of his neck.

"Backseat," Richie repeats, but the urgency in his voice is gone.

Eddie pulls back, just a few inches, and watches Richie’s eyes flutter open slowly. He looks at Richie with confusion for a moment, eyes wide and dark to match the interior of the car. With a dopey smile, Richie scrambles over the seat into the back of the car, Eddie following behind him. Eddie feels warm, awake, and ready for whatever may come.

Eddie squeezes through the gap between the driver and the passenger seat and leans across to dip down and kiss Richie again. He climbs clumsily into Richie’s lap and Richie places strong hands on his hips to hold him still. They leave a print of warmth when he moves them away and up under Eddie's sweater again. Eddie gasps into his mouth when he feels the large hands grip at his sides, tugging him closer to Richie. Richie flips them around in a sudden fluid motion and Eddie is on his back. The leather of the seats is cold and uncomfortable, and the buckles for the seatbelts are digging into his back, but fuck, he can’t bring himself to care with Richie looking at him like that.

"Scoot back," Richie says, lips moving against Eddie’s jaw. One of his hands slips between Eddie’s thighs to part them, make room for his body.

If it had been anyone else, Eddie would protest. He’s not easy and _definitely_ not someone to get with in the backseat of a car. But this was Richie, and he wasn’t going to let anything stop Richie from touching him anywhere he could right now.

Eddie sinks back against the door and spreads his legs, pushing his hips forward, just a little. The metal is cold against the back of his neck, where the sweater ends. Richie’s hips press against his own and oh, yup, he’s getting hard. Eddie sighs as Richie pulls at the collar of his sweater and kisses at the skin of his collarbone. He slides his hands into Richie’s hair and gently tugs at the curls.

“Rich…” he moans out, quiet and soft.

Richie groans against his neck and kisses the same spot again. He grinds down and starts to suck a mark into Eddie’s neck-

And he snaps out of it.

Eddie’s eyes shoot wide open and he pushes Richie away. Richie is staring at him, bewildered and a flushed mess. There is an obvious tent in his jeans and Eddie feels bad instantly.

“Is everything okay?” Richie pants. He keeps his hands on Eddie’s knees, looking down at him with furrowed brows.

“Yeah, yeah,” Eddie sits up and rubs a hand over his face. His pants feel as tight as Richie's look and he knows he's in the same situation, “I just...I-“

“It’s fine.” Richie smiles at him in a way that’s too kind for a moment like this. “We can take it slow. We should, actually.” he laughs.

He leans forward and pushes Eddie’s hair from his forehead, tucking strays into its usual part and behind his ears. He presses a soft kiss to his forehead and Eddie thinks he falls in love even more if that could be possible.

“Can I stay with you tonight?” he asks.

Richie smirks, “Dude, is that even a question? You might as well get your own key at this point.”

Eddie rolls his eyes, more fond than annoyed. “I don’t have any of my things but,” he reaches up, a gentle finger tracing Richie’s jawline and over his bottom lip, “I’ll just use yours.”

Richie bumps his nose against Eddie’s and giggles, “God, I love you,”

Eddie tilts his head, “Already saying I love you?” he puts a hand over his chest, “Goodness sir, we just met!” he says with a shitty southern accent.

Richie laughs, big and full of happiness Eddie had never seen from him before. “How could I not? You’re the prettiest boy I darn near met?” he says, mimicking the same accent.

They laugh together and Eddie scoots closer, wrapping his arms around Richie’s neck, and hugs him. Tight and close. He pushes his face into the crook of his neck and lets the warmth and scent of Richie overwhelm him.

Richie doesn’t say anything. He holds Eddie, holds on tight and says nothing. No joke, no cheesy romantic comment that’ll make Eddie blush. The car is so quiet that it could be uncomfortable if it had been anyone else. He could fall asleep with how soothing the sound of crickets and sleeping animals around them is. How comfortable he is in Richie’s arms. 

Alright, this is definitely his favorite place to be. If the world ended then, it wouldn’t matter. It’s romantic and cliche and Eddie loves it. He loves Richie. He loves them. He loves it all.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie opens the car door and throws his backpack down on the floor. He shuts the door and huffs, catching his breath. Richie laughs beside him from the driver’s side.

“Why did you run?”

“The faster I can get out of here the faster I start my weekend.”

Richie turns the key and the engine rumbles loudly to life. “Excellent point, my dearest.”

He backs out of his spot and guns it. The music blares and Eddie would call it a cliche teen movie from the way his hair blows from the half-open windows. Richie continues to move the gear stick around as he shifts speeds and Eddie watches his hand closely. He’s replaced the top module with a sun-stained pool eightball. Eddie understands stick shifts, gets how each pedal works and what to do with them, what each gear is for, but driving one? Hell no. Too quick-paced and panic-inducing for him. Richie makes it look easy and hot as fuck. So, Eddie lets Richie drive as fast as he wants because the sight is enough to make it worth it.

Richie parks along the curb down the street. Eddie gives him a quick kiss goodbye, and just as he’s about to get up and leave, Richie grabs a hold of his arm to stop him.

“Hey,” He blurts out quick and Eddie stares at him with wide expectant eyes. “I, uh, I wanted to take you out to dinner tonight.”

Eddie softens and relaxes back down into the seat. He smiles, “Like a date?”

Richie’s soft smile matches his and he pulls Eddie closer to him across the center console.

“I’ll pick you up around...six.” he kisses Eddie’s cheek and gently pats it after. “Wear something nice.”

Eddie nods and kisses Richie again, but lingers this time. He finally leaves the vehicle and walks down the sidewalk towards his home. Behind him, tires squeal in a U-turn and the engine’s loud rumble fades as Richie drives away.

He has a slight skip to his step as he turns up the driveway to his house. A big smile on his face and he enters through the back door. He kisses his mother in greeting and avoids any questions of his good mood. Eddie shuts his bedroom door, tossing his things on the floor and chucking off his shoes, and goes go his closet right away. He looks over the nice shirts and begins to think.

Eddie grabs his jacket and hurries down the stairs keys ringing together in his pocket. Sonia looks him over with a confused look on her face. He comes up with a quick excuse for such nice clothing: that his school was doing an award ceremony and he was one of the people who volunteered to present. She wishes him good luck with a wet kiss to his cheek and he practically runs out the front door.

He puts the jacket over his dress shirt and follows the sound of Richie’s car down the street. The blue car comes into view and his legs move in strides. He gets into the car and immediately looks to Richie.

He has black slacks on and a nice white button-up tucked into it. His hair has been styled so the curls are not as wild as they usually are. The smell of strong cologne hits Eddie and he feels as if every sense he has light up like a match. He repeats the worst things in his mind to calm himself down.

“Hey,” Richie says, looking at Eddie with matching interest.

Eddie smiles, “Hey,”

“Y-you look nice.” Eddie laughs. “What?”

Eddie tilts his head, resting the back of it over the seat, a soft smile on his face, “I've never seen you nervous before.” he chuckles, “Especially at a loss for words.”

Richie scoffs, “It’s because I’m going on a date with the cutest guy in the world, alright?”

Eddie nudges Richie’s hand to turn over with his pinky and links their fingers together. “We’ve been out to places together before.” his nose scrunches up and he narrows his eyes, still smiling, “To places far too cheesy and romantic for two friends.”

Richie squeezes his hand then lets it go. He shifts the car into drive, “I know we have, but still.” he lets his foot off the brakes and drives away from the curb in a surprisingly careful way.

Eddie gapes, “Richie Tozier? Not speeding or giving me a heart attack while he drives?”

The homes and streets move past in the windows in the way that Eddie can still see their designs; compared to the usual blur of images.

“I don’t drive _that_ bad,” Richie reaches across and pops open the glove compartment. He turns on the radio and cranks it. “But for you, I’ll drive like a good citizen.” he raises his voice for Eddie to hear him over the radio.

Eddie smiles at him and winds his window down all the way. He rests his head against the doorframe and sticks his whole arm out of the frame of the window. The air is cold, too cold to be doing this, but he fees giddy and happy and wants to jump in the air. But he can't do that at the moment. So he settles for surfing the waves of the November air with his palm.

They pull up to a restaurant that, just from the look of it, is far too expensive. Eddie starts to ramble things that Richie starts to ignore as he finds a parking spot. How they can go somewhere else or how he doesn’t want Richie to spend much on him. Richie just parks the car and once they’re stopped, he places a hand on Eddie’s thigh and squeezes. He tells him it’s alright and with that fond smile Eddie loves, they exit the car

Richie steps ahead of him to open the restaurant double doors when his cheesy smile drops. The waiting area is packed. Eddie looks in, then at Richie.

“What’s wrong?”

Richie laughs. “You’re gonna kill me,”

“Richie…”

“I didn’t get a reservation-”

“What?”

Richie lets another group of people walk in then lets go of holding the door open. He grabs onto Eddie’s arm and pulls him along as he walks out of the way. 

“I know, stupid, but this place is fucking booked till next year!”

“Then why are we even here?”

“Sounds dumb but I was kind of hoping they’d have room for us.” he chuckles nervously.

Eddie groans and sits down on the nearby bench. Richie sits down next to him and digs through the pocket of his slacks. He sticks his legs out in front of himself, crossing them at the ankles, and finds the pack with his lighter.

Eddie scoffs, “Don't do that.”

“What?” Richie asks, rhetorical, with his cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth, mumbling his words slightly. “Don’t you think I look hot?” he smiles and lights up, the metal of the lighter softly clicking as it shuts. “Seemed to think I did that one time at my place.” Richie chuckles at the look on Eddie’s face. “Yup, I remember that. You were obvious without even trying to be!”

Eddie crosses his arms; doing it out of a need for warmth and annoyance at being called out. “Yeah, well, you can’t blame me for it.”

Richie blows out a big puff and rests his wrist on his knee, cigarette dangling between two fingers. “Nope! I can’t!” his grin so big his cheeks push up at his glasses. “The number of times you looked good and I couldn’t say anything-”

“Dude, you _did_ say something.” Eddie laughs.

Richie shrugs. “Hey, it worked out in the end, didn't it.”

“Yeah,” he sighs, looking down at his boots and pushes his hands between his thighs to keep them warm. He smiles to himself, “Yeah it did.”

They sit on the bench in silence. Richie smokes beside him and watches the cars drive by on the main street. Behind them, people are talking loudly and the smell of food comes through the door and vents at the top of the building. The smell makes Eddie’s stomach growl.

He looks over at Richie, “You thinking what I’m thinking?”

Richie puts the cigarette out on the armrest of the bench and flicks it toward the street. He leans on his elbow, resting on his thigh, and faces Eddie. “Pizza or tacos?”

He purses his lips, humming in his thought. “Pizza.”

Richie holds up his keys in the air, “Which place?”

“I’ve got one in mind.”

“Same here,” Richie narrows his eyes, a challenge coming up, Eddie can tell. “Count of three. One, two, three-“

“Ronnie’s!” they say in unison. Eddie laughs and Richie reaches over, high-fiving Eddie.

“We have good taste,” Eddie says, still laughing.

Richie is glowing with the smile on his face. “Dude, we are so meant to be together.”

They race to the car and ignore the looks of people walking out of the restaurant. As they drive towards the place, Richie fidgets with the collar of his shirt and undoes the tie, tossing it into the backseat. He unbuttons the first few of his shirt and lets out a groan of relief. He pulls the shirt out from his pants, looking far more relaxed and more like himself. Eddie does the same in undoing his shirt but keeps it tucked in.

The place is pretty empty from what Eddie can see through the window. Only a few people sit at the tables and some kids chattering. Richie and Eddie walk into the pizza place and head towards the register. Richie orders for them while Eddie finds a spot near the window. He looks around and laughs quietly to himself. 

They look ridiculous. Two eighteen-year-old boys dressed in black slacks and white dress shirts with their cleanest shoes. Their hair slicked and perfectly put together. They’re dressed like they’re going to a business meeting or a wedding, but instead, they’re sitting in a dirty half-empty pizza joint having more fun there than anywhere else. It’s them, so very them, and Eddie would never want anything else. He honestly thinks if he was with a guy who only wanted to eat at the finest restaurant in downtown, he’d probably run away. He likes clean and neat and kind and a man who thinks about every little thing they do. But Richie is the guy who’s room is a mess but his car still smells like it just left the dealership, he’s so nice sometimes Eddie thinks he’s joking, and never really thinks about what he says because it’s better to do that than say nothing at all. 

It’s why he loves Richie and not the idea in his head. It’s why he’s okay with being dressed in a suit while he eats a cheese pizza on flimsy paper plates. The food is gross and he knows it’s horrible for him and he should probably pat the slice down with a napkin, but he doesn’t care right now. He can’t be overwhelmed by it. All he wants is to focus on the way Richie is across from him with a string of cheese stuck to his bottom lip and laughing as he retells a story about him and Stanley.

Eddie points it out to him and he licks it up with his tongue, continuing with his story. He’s loud enough that the three people in the restaurant look at them. Eddie feels an underlying embarrassment with the eyes on him, but for the most part, he feels like he could give them the finger.

They finish their dinner and Richie drives them around town, going nowhere in particular. Eddie holds Richie’s hand in his lap and rubbed his thumb slowly up and down the back of Richie’s warm hand and over the knuckles of his thumb. He looks out the window and takes in the scenery of Derry. He pulls Richie’s hand up to his lips and kisses it, then drops it back down to his lap. He closes his eyes and listens to Richie’s voice singing softly to the song on the radio.

━━━━━━━━

The school has the week off for Thanksgiving break and if that wasn’t part of the holiday, Eddie would hate it completely. Who willing spends the whole day with distant relatives over food? At least with Christmas gifts are involved. Plus the holiday backstory is bullshit and Eddie would get rid of it if he could. Only thing was that he liked _making_ the food; not necessarily eating it. His mother always told him he was too skinny, and every time his relatives came for the holidays or birthdays, he had to hear it again when the food was in front of him. His mother trying to force him over the years and Eddie thinks some part of that plays a role in his hate for the holiday.

Okay. He can make an exception for pie though.

It’s the morning of Thanksgiving and Eddie spends it cleaning. His mother is out to grab last-minute items for dinner tonight. He gets every nook and cranny in the house and it takes him only two hours to finish. He saves the kitchen for after the cooking he’s about to do. He makes every dish he and his mother didn’t prepare the night before and tries to avoid as much mess as he possibly can. He puts the stuffed turkey in the oven for tonight and steps back. After wiping his hands off on it, he slips the apron off and puts it back onto its rightful hook.

He looks down at his watch and curses. How did it get so late?

Eddie got dressed upstairs in his most comfortable, yet proper, outfit he could find. He tucked the shirt neatly into his dress pants and slipped into his dress shoes. (Eddie hated Thanksgiving, but that didn’t mean he had to not look good, alright!) He polishes his shoes and the smell of the chemicals in the wax makes Eddie sigh. It’s one of those smells he shouldn’t enjoy, but really can’t _not_ inhale it when it’s there. Kind of like gasoline and sharpies.

His mother came into his room and he helped her put her jewelry on. She told him how handsome he was, gave him gross wet kisses to his cheeks, and fixed his hair with the gel he applied to it. She then left and hurried downstairs to finish up decorating and getting everything ready.

And that’s how he ends up, an hour before his family shows up, realizing he forgot something. He forgot the most important thing. He scurries past his mother and grabs her car keys from the bowl. She questions him, mostly yelling, and he makes the excuse of: “I forgot something for dessert.” and leaves.

He drives as fast and safe as he can through the neighborhoods. He checks the clock relentlessly and his free foot taps on the mat of the car. Eddie turns left onto a street and spots the blue Camaro parked in its usual spot in front of the house. He parks the car across the street, double-checking it’s locked, then runs across the street once a car passes.

He knocks on the door and fixes where his shirt started to slip out from his trousers. It's still light out, but it’s beginning to dim with the sunset. The light that spills out from the opening door in front of him still illuminates him as if it were night.

“Ayy- Oh,” Richie drops his hands. “Thought you were my Auntie May!”

Eddie knitted his brows together in confusion and couldn’t help but smile, “Do I look like your Auntie May?”

Richie purses his lips, “Kinda. She’s got smaller tits than you, though.”

“Fuck you,” Eddie rolls his eyes and Richie laughs.

“Ain’t that the plan?”

“Dude. It’s Thanksgiving.”

“And? Who says no vulgar humor on Thanksgiving? The holiday police?”

“The fucks the holiday police?”

“Dunno, but whoever they are, fuck em!” Richie leans his arm against the door and places a hand on his hip. His smile beams at Eddie and his cheeks push up on his glasses. “Sex jokes on Christmas, though? That’s fucked. Jesus’ birthday and all that.”

Eddie is about to respond to that, but opts out to groaning and pinches the bridge of his nose and shakes his head. He steps inside the house. For November, it’s fucking _cold_ , and inside the Tozier residence it is warm and makes Eddie sigh in relief. Richie closes the door and Eddie finally gets a good look at him.

If he didn’t look down, he wouldn’t think Richie was dressed up. His hair is just as messy as it usually was and he still had on his glasses. His clothes were an entirely different story. He has a black button up on and the sleeves are rolled up. On his wrist is a silver band that Eddie has never seen before and it sparks his interest immediately. He tucked the bottom of the shirt into his black trousers with a black belt that makes Eddie’s hormones start raging right where he stands. Then, in Richie fashion, he still has his beat-up, written all over, black high tops on. It breaks away the image and makes Eddie love him even more.

“Oh shit,” Eddie snapped himself out of it. “Is your family here? Oh my god, how did I forget that part-”

“Eddie,” Richie laughs and places his hands in Eddie’s, “No one is here yet, you’re fine. Even if they were I wouldn’t care.”

“But _I_ would.”

Richie scoffs, “I’d make you have this stupid dinner with us if you didn’t have your own family to attend to.” he tilts his head, “Speaking of that, why are you here and not there?” his tone shifts and his eyes widen, “Did something happen?” he says quickly.

“No! No, nothing happened.” Eddie smiles softly and rubs his thumb over Richie’s, “I just wanted to see you.” it comes out far more quiet without meaning to.

“Eds…” 

Richie says the name with such felicity that Eddie pulls him towards him into a hug. He wraps his arms tight around Richie’s neck and Richie pulls him closer to his front where his arms are wrapped around Eddie’s waist. Eddie kisses his neck softly and Richie chuckles against him. Just as he’s about to turn and properly kiss him, footsteps come from the living room and Eddie immediately pulls back. There’s a slight look of hurt in Richie’s eyes, but he understands.

“Pops!” Richie exclaims, arms going into the air.

“Son!” his father mimics. His voice is eerily similar to Richie’s and their laughs almost match.

Richie laughs and puts his arm around his father’s shoulders. His father adjusts the own glasses on his nose and puts his arm around Richie as well. Richie is the same height as his father, has the same black curly hair and glasses to match. His father has blue eyes instead of brown and he isn’t as pale as Richie and Maggie. He has a rounder, softer face compared to the two of them as well.

“Dad, this is Eddie,” Richie gestures to Eddie’s awkwardly standing frame.

“Hello, Eddie!” His father’s voice booms with joy and holds his hand out for Eddie to shake. Eddie gives him a proper smile and stands up straighter. “Are you joining us for dinner?”

“Oh, no, I just stopped by to uh,” Eddie flails his hand nervously and laughs.

“Wanted to wish me a happy Thanksgiving,” Richie interjects. He winks at Eddie then looks over at his father.

His father nods, understandingly, and lets go of Richie. He looks over Eddie once quickly and Eddie feels uncomfortable with fresh eyes on him. Add being looked at by his boyfriend’s father while he’s in his best clothes as another good reason for Thanksgiving. 

“So, you go to school with Richie?”

“Yeah! Yeah, same econ class.” Eddie puts his hands in his pockets to hide the way he keeps rolling his thumb over his fingers. “He’s been helping me study with it, actually. You’ve got a smart son.”

Richie’s father lets out a single loud _Ha!_ , and slaps Richie on his shoulder. “My boy has got smarts for everything.” he glares, “And too quick of wit sometimes.” he shakes his finger at him. And then the scold on his face drops instantly. He starts laughing and Richie shakes his head with an embarrassed smile.

Eddie chuckles, “Yes, _very_ witty.” Richie throws him a pleading look and all Eddie can do is give him a shrug with a smug smirk.

“Well, I don’t want to keep your own family waiting for you.” He shakes Eddie’s hand again. “You have a good Thanksgiving, Eddie.”

“You too, Mister Tozier-”

“Call me Wentworth or Went.” Wentworth smiles, “Whichever you want.”

Eddie nods slowly, “Alright, Wentworth.” he chuckles when Wentworth does. “It was nice meeting you.” 

“It was nice meeting you! Even if it was short-lived. I always like to meet Richie’s friends.”

He lets Wentworth open the door for him and he looks over his shoulder at Richie. “Cya later, Rich.” the words are innocent but evocative to Richie. He raises a hand as goodbye and Eddie waves. Wentworth waves goodbye as well and then the door is shut.

The night finally came and now the cold was at its worst in the dark. Eddie got to his car as quick as he could and got the heater running right away. He hoped there was some amount of cash in his wallet as he starts to drive towards the supermarket. He had to make his lie to his mother believable (even if it has been way too long for it to be). 

Eddie buys a small container of pumpkin pie and the second he steps through the door of his home, he’s met with the smell of dinner and the sound of all his family members talking. They all greeted him with eagerness in their voices and he pushes his way through it. He’s mostly excited to see his little cousins and that’s it. He puts the pie in the fridge and sits down beside his mother at the table. The family link hands in preparation for prayer and wait for Eddie’s grandfather to begin. Just before he closes his eyes, he catches the way his mother is staring at him.

It’s that assuming look he’s gotten his whole life. Like she’s trying to figure out what’s wrong with him. He ignores her by looking away and down at the table. He closes his eyes with everyone else. He even ignores the way his mother’s thumb rubs over the back of his hand during the words his grandfather preaches that he doesn’t understand any meaning of.

Eddie thinks of the Tozier family and he smiles to himself, pushing back the feeling of negativity.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie spends the rest of the break with his family and he’s about ready to explode. His mother insisted he stay with his grandparents at the house and he loves them, no doubt, but not when he has to spend three whole days with them. Saying he’s miserable would be an extreme, but it is all he can describe himself as.

They eventually leave on Sunday morning and Eddie immediately runs to the phone. He’s about to call up Richie when he remembers he’s working. He thinks about who might be free and then it comes to him. He calls up Mike and he answers only after a few rings. Mike is more than willing to hang out and Eddie is already on his bike riding to Mike’s place.

He lives on the outskirts of Derry in farm country. Mike is outside on his bike and waves to Eddie. Eddie didn’t think he could be so at ease to see someone before until he was trapped inside his house for three days and Mike Hanlon was riding his bike beside him telling him stories about his Thanksgiving and asking Eddie about his. 

Eddie loved Mike like family. He’s the best friend he needed growing up or the brother to comfort him and give advice when he needed it most. But Mike was here now and that’s what mattered. Mike always listened to Eddie so intently and full of curiosity. During practices, he always helped Eddie warm-up and gave him the boost of confidence he had been missing. Mike understood him on a level Eddie didn’t even get. With every perfect smile Mike gives him on their ride into town, Eddie swears he could fall in love with this best friend if he wasn’t already dating his other best friend.

Mike raises from his bike seat and races against Eddie. Eddie yells after him and Mike laughs at the way he screams about how dangerous this can be.

Eddie likes shopping. It’s part of the reason why he is always at the second-hand store that gives him a great chance at finding clothes that he won't have to see on other people. The issue currently is that Mike takes shopping to a whole new level. Mike isn’t the type to stick with one or three stores; it's a long row of stores in Derry’s main sector of clothing stores, one after the next. Despite this, Eddie lets Mike do whatever he wants and is eventually entertained by the side of Mike he didn’t know existed till today.

They grab lunch at the coffee shop in the middle of the main square and eat at one of the outside tables. It was a surprisingly warm day in Derry. There are only small patches of snow on the grass or in the street and not a cloud in the sky. The sun beams down over them and Eddie feels comfortable and warm where he sits and sips his coffee. He laughs along with Mike and they share the blueberry muffin Mike bought for them.

They make a spontaneous decision to go see a movie and they finish it around one o'clock. They walk down the sidewalk and past familiar faces with their bikes at their sides. Eddie felt like a kid again and he couldn’t be happier. 

Mike is walking ahead of him and they stop in front of the shop that Richie works at. Eddie wants to groan like a child or maybe tell Mike to go somewhere else, but he can’t find any motivation to do so. Mike stops for a second to dig through his pockets, thinking he dropped something on the walk over here, and Eddie finally allows himself to glance over at the counter through the window.

He's not prepared for the instant surge of heat at the sight of Richie. Shit. Eddie’s cheeks feel warm and obvious as if one look at his face was all it would take for Mike to know just what has been going on the past few weeks. And Eddie looks at the stupid blue polo shirt with the goofy store logo on it and it’s somehow, _somehow_ , attractive. 

The dark shadows under Richie’s eyes and his mussed hair and his glasses that don’t help the situation of his work attire at all. But his smile as he laughs with his co-worker, his lips, his mouth - okay, maybe Eddie has a thing for Richie’s mouth.

He and Mike prop and tie their bikes up to the post outside by the road and they head inside the store.

Richie doesn't notice him immediately. He's talking to his co-worker, apparently telling a story about someone (possibly a customer) with a mimicking expression and arms flailing. It's only a few seconds after the sound of the doorbell has faded that he does look over at the entrance. Eddie is mostly certain that Richie’s eyes widen for just an unguarded moment before his expression smoothes over.

"Hey," Mike says when they enter. His smile is startlingly bright and honest, aimed more at the girl than at Richie. Eddie breathes out a sigh of relief and meets Richie’s gaze for no more than a second before he looks away first.

He follows Mike around the shop like a child and their parent. He gives Mike advice on what to buy or what may be useful to him. He also somewhat listens to the way Mike talks about the pretty brunette behind the cash register. Apparently, her name is Bianca and is in their class, but Eddie never seemed to notice her.

The conversation bounces around as such for a while, and Eddie spares a glance over to where Richie stands beside the girl. She is pretty, but when next to Richie? Eddie can’t even look at her. Eddie locks eyes with Richie and subconsciously bites his lip and looks away.

"I'm going to take my break," Richie tells Bianca, and his voice rises to carry to where Eddie is standing still with Mike, looking over the items on the shelf. "If you need me, I'll be out in back."

She gives him a slightly surprised nod. "Yeah, okay, sure."

Richie turns on his heel and hopes he got the message Eddie was sending correctly.

He lets the back door swing shut and leans against the rough concrete of the wall that separates the shop from the small alley. It hardly ever frequented and is overflowing with trash cans beside the backdoor. It’s the perfect smoking spot for Richie on his breaks - or now the perfect place to meet with his boyfriend. His _boyfriend_. The word being attached to Eddie still makes Richie giddy. But Eddie looked at him differently today, and he that nervousness came back right when Richie pulls himself out of his head and realized where he was. His leg bounces nervously and he pats himself down to find his pack. It’s not on him and he curses in regret. Fuck, he needs Beverly.

He's just about done with his monologue on how he read it completely wrong and Eddie isn’t going to come out here, fifteen minutes left of his break when the back door creaks open and Eddie peers out uncertainly. 

Richie straightens and gives him a smug smirk. "Couldn't wait till the weekend?"

Eddie doesn't answer right away. He closes the door behind him and steps out into the alley, and the first thing Richie’s mind notices is how Eddie is wearing his sweatshirt again. He’s tied it up with a tie so that it rides up to show a slice of tan skin above the waistband of his blue jeans. The sight of Eddie still wearing his clothes makes his nervousness slip away.

Then it comes back immediately when he sees the way Eddie’s lip quivers as he takes a deep breath. The stress from the weekend hits him in full and it is sudden and Eddie doesn’t know where it comes from.

“What the fuck,” Eddie whispers. “What the fuck?” it’s rhetorical and the only thing Eddie can think of to say.

“Oh Eds,” Richie pushes off the wall and puts his hands on Eddie’s shoulders, hands slipping down to his biceps, “What’s wrong?”

Eddie takes a deep breath and looks away from Richie’s concerned gaze to not cry, “I’ve been fucking stuck in that house with my mom for so long I thought I was gonna rip my fucking hair out, man.” he wipes his face clean of a few stray tears. “I wanted to see you,” he whispers, a soft smile on his face.

He reaches for Richie and hugs him. Richie holds onto him tightly, arms wrapping around his frame like a protective barrier. Richie places a kiss into his hair and rests his cheek against the side of Eddie’s temple. He sways on his feet and it spins them around in a subtle dance. Eddie pulls back from him, no longer upset, and smiles softly up at Richie.

Richie makes a noise at the back of his throat and kisses Eddie on the lips. It starts innocent, then Eddie kisses back harder. He forces himself back against the wall away from Richie and takes a second to think. He looks over his boyfriend then gives him a wicked grin. His fingers curl in Richie’s t-shirt and he pulls him in with enough momentum to make Richie stumble, catching himself with his palms flat against the wall, one on each side of Eddie’s head. 

He surges forward and Richie leans in and their mouths meet harshly, teeth clicking. Richie forces Eddie’s head back against the wall, pressing his whole body back against it and that shouldn't work because Richie is so lanky and Eddie’s the one who does track and works on cars and carries equipment, but he lets Richie handle him like that. His body becomes puddy and the way Richie keeps kissing and licking his neck is enough to send Eddie practically over the edge.

Eddie shuts his eyes and pushes the palm of his hand down onto his crotch and Richie makes a deliciously raw noise in the back of his throat. When Richie grinds against him, a slow roll of their hips, Eddie has to bite down on a moan himself.

Richie sucks Eddie’s bottom lip into his mouth and he adjusts to the pressure. The brick wall is digging into his back, chafing his skin, and Eddie isn't certain how much more of this it can take, but fuck. He really couldn't care less.

"Your shirt is so ugly and stupid," Eddie utters randomly.

“Your face is stupid,” Richie bites back and Eddie pushes his thigh up between Richie’s leg, causing him to slump forward and pant hotly against Eddie’s cheek. “Want me to take it off?”

"Your mom's face is stupid," Eddie says weakly, and it could be funny, almost, except for how it makes Richie’s stomach clench helplessly.

Richie hums against his ear and Eddie’s whole spine tingles, “Oh! Eddie gets off on a good one!” he chuckles.

“And yeah, I would have you take it off if we weren’t here right now.” Eddie gasps.

Then one of Richie’s hands slid over Eddie’s pants and, fuck, they're in a public place, people could be walking by any moment, and still Eddie tips his head back. It’s filthy and he can feel his sweater pull at the rough material of brick. He thinks about the alley and the wall and how there was gum stuck nearby on it and that makes Eddie calm down enough.

"We can’t," he gets out.

Richie huffs and rests his forehead against Eddie’s. He drops down to his neck, kissing it one more time, then straightens himself out. "Yeah, I should get back inside," Richie says as evenly as he can. His pupils are slightly widened, though, and there are two bright spots of color high on his cheeks. He cups Eddie’s face in his hands, rubbing his thumb over his cheek, and smiles. “Hey, come by tonight,” he tells him.

“Is your mom gonna be there?”

Richie chuckles, “I don’t know, maybe. Why? Wanna hang out with her more than me? 

“I wanna finish where this started,” Eddie says with a smirk.

Richie’s eyebrows raise and he laughs. “Alright, I see, I see.” he lets Eddie go and fixes his uniform. “I close today, so you can come by here and leave with me or go to my house before and wait for me. My dad might be home, though.”

“I’ll come here.” Eddie nods, wrapping his arms around himself, missing the warmth of Richie’s body, “don’t want to have to explain to your dad why I’m there alone.” he laughs nervously.

Richie frowns. “Don’t worry about him, alright?” the words don’t ease Eddie and Richie nudges him playfully, “He likes you,”

“Really?”

“Yes, really! You couldn’t tell?!”

“I don’t know! I just thought he was being extra nice because it was Thanksgiving and all that.”

“Dude, you’ll know if ol’ Wentworth Tozier doesn’t like ya,” Richie smiles. “He doesn’t know about,” he gestures between them, “this, necessarily, but! He thinks you’re a good kid.”

Eddie nods, looking down at his feet, “Good to know…” he opens his mouth to ask something, but it’s interrupted by a beeping noise.

Richie looks down at his watch and curses. “I gotta get back in there, what was it you were gonna say?”

Eddie shakes his head and waves his hand dismissively. “It can wait.”

“You sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“Alright,” Richie kisses Eddie quickly on the lips, he grabs onto Eddie’s hips and cocks an eyebrow, “I better not get torn into about that later. I’m still trying to fu-“

“Break talks over, Rich!” Eddie interjects, pushing Richie away. 

He waits by the wall, watching a laughing Richie go back into the building. Richie winks and waves goodbye. Eddie smiles, waving back. The door closes shut and Eddie lets out the breath he didn’t realize he held in. He lets his head hit the wall as he looks up at the sky, then jumps away when he touches something with his hands. He gags and wipes it - whatever may be on the brick - off on his pants. He groans and eventually goes back inside the store once the time between Richie’s reentry is enough.

When he gets back inside, Richie is already gone down some isle, and Aila is busy with a new customer. Eddie makes his way back to Mike, who waits outside for him, and they get on their bikes. Mike doesn’t ask anything about how it took him so long to “use the bathroom,” and they ride towards Mike’s house.

━━━━━━━━

There were only so many times in Eddie’s life where he decided enough was enough. It was easiest when it came to bullies as a kid, even if it resulted in his beating, but standing up to them brought him a sense of pride. No matter what happened after.

It was much harder when it came to his mother. Sonia Kaspbrak was a woman that would seem like she’s done, nothing left to say, but Eddie knew too well. That look in her eyes as she let Eddie go or the condescending tone of it all. As a child he let her do it. It’s hard to stand up to a parent, especially someone like her. But, as he got older, he realized he had to. Especially like now.

It was Sunday, the last day of the break, and he wanted to go out. He hadn’t hung out with anyone for the most part and it was the last time they could all relax and not have to worry about class or work or anything. He just wanted to see his friends outside of school and not have to lie to his mother about it.

He was fully dressed, keys in hand, and face to face with her. Her arms were crossed and her face was contorted into an offended furrow of her brows. He was taller than her now. Standing over and having to look down at her made him have some sort of confidence compared to when he was so much smaller as a child. But he still felt that subconscious fear. That feeling of knowing this person is at some higher level than him.

“Mom,” Eddie says calmly, “I am going out with my friends. I am going to be back tonight for school tomorrow.”

“Why don’t you stay here, Eddie? You know how I feel about your friends.”

“You haven’t even met them!” Eddie groans and rubs at his eyes, trying to prevent a headache from coming on, “I’m going to be back, alright?

She frowns and unfolds her arms. She reaches up and forward and cups his face in her hands. She rubs her thumbs over the soft skin of his cheeks.

“You are so much older,” she sighs. “Please don’t keep growing.”

“I can’t stop that.”

“Don’t go out, please Eddie,” she pleads, her eyes wide and begging like a puppy, “I can’t have you out with those people. They don’t know you and what you need. I do.” she shakes her head. “It’s already hard enough to send you to that school every day.”

Eddie places his hands over hers and pulls them away from his face.

“I’m trying to figure things out, mom.” he tries. He keeps trying for her to understand, even if it never works. It fails each time, but he tries. “I’m not going to leave you any time soon.”

“But you will at some point!”

“Who knows?” Eddie lets go of her hands and steps away from her. “My friends are good people, trust me. They’re not going to get me hurt or anything like that, alright?”

She grabs onto his hand and holds it in both her own, “Eddie-bear, please,” she looks so small and worn out it almost makes Eddie stay behind.

Eddie pulls his hand out of her grip, “This isn’t something _that_ important. It’s not that serious and as I said, I’ll be back tonight.” 

He unlocks the front door and opens it. The cold air gets into the house and swirls with the warmth of the heater. Eddie zips his jacket up to his chin and kisses his mother on her cheek.

“Eddie,” she pleads again, but she doesn’t touch him this time. She doesn’t kiss him back like she used to.

He leaves her standing there, shutting the door behind himself. He jogs down the steps and gets into his car as quickly as he can. He blasts the heater the second he turns the car on and lets the engine heat up along with himself. He looks back at the house, expecting his mother to run out into the cold with nothing but her slippers and dress on, screaming at him as she should have. But she doesn’t. She isn’t even looking through the front window.

Eddie drives away as fast as he can. He turns the radio on and continues down the street. The further he gets from his home and the closer he gets to Richie’s, his mind stops running. He thinks of Richie and Beverly instead. He smiles as he turns onto the street and sees Beverly’s truck parked against the curb across from Richie’s house.

He parks behind her car and gets out, hurrying up to the house to avoid the cold. He knocks at the door in rapid succession and tries to contain his heat in his jacket. The door opens not long after and Richie grabs him immediately. He pulls Eddie inside, shutting the door with his foot, and hugs him. Tight and warm and Richie.

“Bev is out back,” he tells Eddie, words slightly muffled from where his mouth his pressed against the side of Eddie’s temple.

Eddie pulls back, “Dude, it’s freezing out there!”

“We’ve got the fire pit going.” Richie smiles. “Gonna make smores and tell campfire stories.”

Eddie stands on the tips of his toes and kisses Richie, quick and innocent. Then the smell of freshly made coffee hits him and he sighs. He moves past him to the kitchen and grabs a mug for himself. He goes to the coffee maker and pours himself a cup. Unlike Richie, he has a very specific amount of sweeteners and sugars he puts into it to make it perfect. Richie watches him and laughs at it. Eddie gives him the finger then pulls the mug close to his face, letting the heat of it warm him up. He holds it with both hands and blows on it, takes a sip, and moans at the taste of it.

They walk to the backyard and Beverly waves to Eddie. She’s covered in a heavy jacket, a scarf around her neck, and a beanie on her head. She has her cup of coffee held in one hand by its handle, resting on her knee, and a cigarette in the other. Eddie sits down across from her on one of the chairs and scoots closer to the fire. It’s warm and smells like fall and he takes another sip of his coffee.

Richie sits down next to Eddie, close as he can be, and reaches out with his palms towards the fire. He rubs them together to warm them up.

“How was your Thanksgiving?” she asks him, sipping her coffee at the same time as Eddie.

“Good,” Eddie says, licking his lips of the drink. “More fine, but,” he shrugs.

Beverly chuckles, “I think you could say that about every holiday that involves seeing your family.”

They spend hours out there by the fire. Conversations about stupid things and school and people and movies that just came out. Richie eventually comes out with a bag of marshmallows, a pack of chocolates, and a box of graham crackers. He has hangers under his arm. They’re makeshift sticks for cooking. The metal has been broken and adjusted to have a loop at the end for holding and a long stick to put over the flame. The three of them eagerly make the smores like kids during a camping trip. It’s nice and calm and Eddie wants to stay there forever. Maybe without the cold though.

Richie finishes eating his smore and licks his fingers clean. Eddie looks at him and Richie smirks mischievously. He wiggles his gross fingers at him and Eddie yells, making Beverly laugh. He scoots over and wraps his arms around Eddie, snuggling him close. He closes his eyes and sighs, relaxing against Eddie. Eddie’s arms are restricted with how Richie is wrapped around him, but he still tries to eat his smore even if he has to struggle.

Then there’s a flash and the sound of clicking. They look over at Beverly and she has a polaroid camera in her hands. She takes the photo out and waves it in the air.

“Too cute to pass up,” she explains.

Eddie scoffs, “Come on! At least get one where I’m not eating.”

She chuckles, “Alright, alright,” she lifts the camera to her face. 

Eddie finishes off the snack and gets into a proper photo position. He wraps his arms around Richie’s neck and Richie keeps his around his waist. They smile big and Eddie can’t help but laugh a little at it. Not that it’s funny at all, but it’s so cute that he can’t believe it. His best friend is taking a photo of him hugging his boyfriend. His _boyfriend_ Richie. It is something he doesn’t think he will ever get over. He hopes he never does.

The camera flashes and clicks and the photo slowly come out on the bottom of the camera. Beverly waves it in the air like the other and sets it down on her thigh with the other one. As Eddie pulls away, Richie kisses his cheek quickly. Eddie smiles and kisses him on the lips. It lingers for a second, then Eddie pulls away. He would kiss Richie for hours if he could.

Beverly smiles, “You guys are so cute, you know that right?”

Richie scoffs, “Uh, duh? Best couple in all of Derry.” he slings his arm across Eddie’s shoulders and tugs him close to his side and kisses the top of his head.

Eddie looks down at his watch and curses. It was already ten o’clock. “I gotta go home. I promised my mom I would be tonight,” he pats Richie’s chest. “No sleepover tonight.” he laughs.

Beverly stands up and stretches with a few cracks of her back. She hands the photos to Eddie and picks up her empty mug. “I’m gonna crash here if that’s cool?”

Richie stands up as well. “You can live here I don’t care.”

Beverly laughs. “Hey, don’t tempt me like that.”

They all get into the house and sighed in relief at the warmth of the heater. Beverly strips down from her heavy clothes and throws herself down onto the couch. She pulls the blanket up over herself. Her goodbye to Eddie is muffled by the pillow as she shoves her face into it.

Richie walks with Eddie to the front door.

“You sure you can’t stay?” he asks in a whisper. He holds onto Eddie’s hands, looking down at him with soft eyes.

Eddie frowns, “I wish I could believe me.” he kisses Richie, but it’s deeper and lasts longer than the one by the fire. He sighs. “Pick me up tomorrow morning.”

Richie nods, a small smile on his face, “Okay,” he kisses Eddie again and rubs his hands over Eddie’s biceps. He squeezes them for a second, then lets go and opens the front door for him. “I’d tell you to drive safely but,” he chuckles. “I know you.”

Eddie narrows his eyes, “Unlike some people,” he pokes at Richie’s chest. He kisses Richie goodbye and hurries to his car. He looks back from where he’s sitting in the driver's seat and sees Richie watching him from the doorway. He waves to Eddie and then, the front door shuts and Eddie is alone again. As he waits for the car to heat up, he fights the urge to run back into the house and stay. He looks at the front door one more time, hands gripping the wheel at ten and two, and he drives away.

━━━━━━━━

Richie picks him up for school on Monday. Beverly’s hunched grumpily over a cup that Eddie guesses has straight black coffee in it in the passenger seat, so he slips into the back.

"What's up?" he says, automatically, and Richie grins at him.

"Bevs’ having her customary post-holiday break hissy fit," he informs Eddie. Beverly glares.

“It’s a week and it feels like a fucking day,” she says. "Why the fuck does it always go so fast? I don't want to go to school."

"Yeah," Eddie agrees, mindlessly. 

Richie smirks at him in the rear-view mirror. They lock eyes and Eddie winks at him, making Richie chuckle.

━━━━━━━━

**DECEMBER**

The last Friday before finals and their last high school fall semester was something special in the eyes of the senior cabinet. Important enough that they planned a movie night in honor of the senior class. Beverly had brought it up to the group and everyone was up for it. Stanley seemed reluctant, but with enough convincing from Richie and Mike, he was in. Bill drove them to eat first at a small diner near the school.

It wasn’t crowded in the place. A few elderly couples in corners, men and women who just got off work and stopped by and sit at the counter. The old television hangs up in the corner and plays some cheesy Christmas movie that not even the elderly like, but it provides some noise to the place.

The group got a booth at the back of the restaurant to try and not bother the other customers. It was those ones that looped around in a circle so everyone in the party can see and hear one another. The isolation barely does any good, since Beverly is laughing loudly at the joke Mike told and the look on Stanley’s face. She’s falling over onto Bill and he too is laughing behind his water.

A man looks over at them and glares, then turns back around to his wife. 

Richie is playing with the wrapper of the straw and pushing it together. Eddie watches him with curiosity. He’s got his head resting against Richie’s shoulder and Stanley on his right, who is busy scolding Mike. Richie places his finger over one end of the straw and dips it into his coke, extracting some of the drink, then lets little droplets hit the paper. It unfolds slowly and out like a small worm.

He looks down at Eddie with a proud smile and Eddie pinches the bridge of his nose but laughs at the childish nature anyway. Richie goes to pick up the paper and throw it away, but then he looks at Ben across from him. Richie rolls the paper into a ball and closes one eye, focusing aim on Ben, and flicks it directly at his cheek.

Ben flinches and Richie laughs, a loud belly laugh, and Ben throws the paper right back at him. Eddie takes it before Richie can flick it again and shoves it into his pocket. 

“Boo!” Richie gives two thumbs down to him. “I’m trying to get Haystack over here to stop frowning,” he leans on his forearms on the table towards Ben. “What’s up, man? Looking like a lost puppy over there.”

Ben shakes his head and smiles weakly. He grabs his cup, “Nothing, I’m just tired.” he takes a sip to avoid any more talking.

Richie narrows his eyes and pokes his cheek with his tongue in thought. He taps his finger on the table, then drops the conversation. He rests his chin on his hand and turns his body to Eddie. He mouths, _Okay…_ with his eyebrows raised and eyes wide. Eddie smacks his thigh under the table and Richie gasps.

“Don’t be mean,” he whispers.

“I’m not being mean!” Richie whispers back defensively. “I’m joking, babe.”

“You always are,”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

Eddie scoots closer to him, “It depends, you asshole,” he says fondly.

Richie puts a hand over his heart and sighs dramatically, “So sweet to me. I love those nicknames you give.”

“Meanie,” Eddie drags it out. “Asshole, fuckhead,” He holds his hand up, putting his fingers up as he counts them off, “Dick,”

Richie stops him, “That’s an actual nickname for my name, though, so it doesn’t count.”

Eddie smirks, “Want me to call you that instead?”

“Dude, you calling me Dick is the worst thing. It makes me feel like you’re some eighty-year-old man and I’m even older.”

“I couldn’t bring myself to call you that as a _real_ name,” Eddie laughs. He gasps, “See that, Rich? I don’t call you things you don’t like!”

Richie pinches Eddie’s thigh, “You like it when I call you Eds, Eds.” he leans in closer to him and smirks, “Admit it.”

“Maybe…” Eddie’s eyelids droop from the sight of Richie so close in his proximity. He bites his lip and smirks. 

Richie laughs at his reaction and goes to lean in to kiss him, ignoring where they are, their friends around them when the waitress comes back with their food and kills the entire moment. He pulls back and shrugs at Eddie, unphased. Eddie groans and Richie laughs, linking their hands together under the table.

They get to school at around eight. They all take some of the pillows and blankets from Bill’s trunk and carry it to the grass where their class is already gathering. They find a good spot toward the center back and set up the blankets and pillows. Other kids around them have candy, buying food from the stands offered by the school, and talking loudly and freely.

Bill lays down across the blanket and Mike forces him to roll over.

“Come on,” Mike manages to push him to the edge of the blanket, “You can lay down but it has to be right….here.”

Bill stares up at the sky with his hands behind his head, “This could work.”

“It better,” Beverly says and pokes at his stomach with her socked foot.

Eddie sits between Richie and Stanley again near the back of the blanket. He pushes his legs up to his chest and watches his friends in front of him. Mike sits off to the side and behind Bill, Beverly near his feet with Bill’s legs in her lap. Ben is behind her, digging through his backpack for the snacks he brought them. He hands the candy to each designated person and uses his backpack as a pillow when he lays down on his back.

The projector starts to fidget and suddenly the movie introduction is being displayed before them. The lights of the lamps around them are being turned off and the students cheer once loudly, then all go quiet in unison when the movie starts to play. The memorable opening shot of _The Nightmare Before Christmas_ gets some of them to sing along with the song.

Eddie lets Richie pull him closer in the dark. He pulls the blanket around himself tighter, pushing his face up into Richie’s side, and Richie rests his cheek in his hair. Richie situates the bag of M&M between them and Eddie can hear the sound of his chewing far more than he’d like.

He lifts his head, “Richie,” he whispers. Richie hums, looking down at him, and shoving another M&M into his mouth. “You’re chewing so loud,”

Richie stops and bites down slowly. “Sorry,” he whispers. 

He puts another candy into his mouth and tries to quiet the sound of chewing as much as he can. Eddie smiles with a thumbs up and goes back to snuggling up beside Richie.

Richie stands up half-way through the film, and Eddie assumes to use the restroom, but he looks back and Richie has moved to the building near the front. A spot that is hidden from everyone and dark. From what Eddie can make out, he is leaning against the brick and appears to be digging through his pocket. 

Eddie gets up and throws the blanket over Bill, who takes it willingly. He ducks down and walks as quickly as he can through the crowd, apologizing to everyone he passes and makes his way over to Richie.

When he gets into the shadows in front of Richie he asks, “What are you doing?”

Richie lifts his head and smiles, “Nosy, aren’t we?”

“Just curious,” Eddie sways on his feet and turns around to watch the movie from where he stands.

There’s the sound of metal being flipped open and Eddie shakes his head. He turns around and looks at Richie again. There’s a glimpse of his face from the light of the small flame before it’s being shut with a small click. Then he’s hit with the smell of smoke and it disappearing into the air.

Eddie’s eyes adjust to the darkness, but he can still barely make out Richie’s features. He hated when Richie smoked, absolutely hated it. It always made his clothes smell and Eddie always hacked up a lung from the stench alone. But, he had to admit, Richie looked _good_ when he did it. He wanted to see Richie right now. Tired from the day and leaning against the wall with his cheeks hollowing for the smoke. Eddie knew what that looked like. He’s seen it many times when he visited Richie after work. Eddie let that image come to his mind for a moment and had to bite back a groan.

He steps forward and reaches for his shirt. Eddie plays with the hem and makes the flannel flap with his hand movements. He drops it and moves his hands up his t-shirt from Richie’s stomach to his chest. Eddie catches the flannel again and plays with the buttons as he speaks. He looks over his shoulder and moves even closer to Richie. He plasters his front to Richie’s and rests his head under his chin. He feels a kiss be placed to the top of his head and he looks up, chin resting on Richie’s chest.

“Hey,” Eddie whispers. He smiles, eyes hooded, an expression of fondness on his face that Richie can’t see anyway.

“Hey,” Richie replies. He blows out smoke from what Eddie can make out. He takes one long drag then puts it out against the wall.

Richie shifts them so Eddie is standing straight up in front of him. He cups Eddie’s face in his hands and backs them up till they’re near the singular light by the doors. The light is dim over them but it’s enough that they can see each other.

Eddie reaches up and traces his finger along Richie’s jaw, “You know, Richie, I…” Then Richie is kissing him. It’s gentle and the familiarity of it brings comfort to Eddie. He lets out a deep exhale through his nose and smiles against Richie’s lips. Richie pulls away and Eddie licks his bottom lip, “I love you,” he whispers

He doesn’t need to whisper at all. The movie is so loud it would cover up even normal speaking volume. No one is around them or can even see them, but Eddie whispers. Like no one can hear it. No one is allowed to hear it, not even the trees. It’s for Richie and him only.

Richie rubs his thumb over Eddie’s cheek. “I love you, too,” he whispers, voice choked up slightly. He smiles at Eddie and kisses him again.

It’s the first time they say it to each other. The first time they ever declared their love with the three words that Eddie was so afraid to say a few months ago. He loves saying it. He loves saying how much he loves Richie. He loves loving Richie.

Eddie doesn’t let him go easy this time. He kisses back with more force and wraps his arms around Richie’s neck. Richie places his hands on Eddie’s hips and chuckles into the kiss. He manages to get Eddie to break away and holds him still.

“We better head back. Can’t have them thinking we’re horny teens!” Richie says.

Richie grabs Eddie’s hand and drags him away from the building. Eddie can’t argue with him when Richie is walking that fast. So, he walks back hand in hand to their friends.

They sit down in the spot they claimed prior and Stanley raises his eyebrow at them. Richie makes a face at him that makes Eddie giggle and Stanley flips him off. Richie pulls the blanket back up and around him and Eddie. Eddie swung his leg over Richie’s and they link their hands together on his lap. Richie rubs his thumb over the knuckles on Eddie’s hand and smiles.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie knew that pain is inevitable. It’s something no one ever can avoid physically or mentally. It can be tamed but sometimes it comes on too fast to do so. He could write volumes on pain like this. He knew it almost too well and that wasn’t anything he was proud of. It made the possibility of becoming cynical always around the corner and no matter how much he couldn't put up with it again - he did. Sometimes it’s easier to hear things and take them straight to the head rather than the heart.

He doesn’t know why he can’t keep a good thing going but he simply can’t. Eddie Kaspbrak is not known for that. He doesn’t know why he feels confident enough to let Richie walk him home after practice.

He started to feel more and more confident with himself about everything when around Richie and their friends, so it wouldn’t be surprising that he felt he could do this.

Eddie stands in front of the door to his house with Richie next to him. Eddie slings his duffle bag over his shoulders after he finds his keys. Richie holds onto his arms and pulls him into a hug. Eddie squirms and complains about how he’s sweaty and smells like shit, but Richie doesn’t care. When Richie pulls away, he smiles fondly at Eddie. Eddie smiles a big toothy grin back at him and reaches up, cupping his face in his hands, and kisses Richie a tender goodbye.

Richie eventually leaves and Eddie watches him go. He smiles to himself and opens the front door. He tries to go up the stairs when he sees his mother in the living room out of the corner of his eye. He stops with one foot on the first step and the grip around his bag tightens. He steps back and turns around on his heels to look at her.

“Mom! I didn’t know you were home?” he tests the waters. She is sitting in her chair with no expression on her face. Cold and hard and her eyes are black. “Mom, what’s wrong?”

She doesn’t look at him. Her eyes stay trained on the wall ahead of her. He walks slow and careful through the threshold in the living room and stops.

“Why?” Her voice cracks. “Why me?”

Eddie swallows back the lump in his throat. “What do you mean?”

She turns her head to look at him. She looks him up and down, hands linked together over her stomach. “Friends?” she smiles, tight and unwelcoming, “Why do you continue to lie to me, Eddie?” Eddie is frozen. His feet won't move from where they feel like they’re rooted in the hardwood. His mouth won’t let the words out that sit in his throat. “Eddie.” she snaps.

Eddie jumps. He blinks rapidly and shakes himself out of it. His mouth opens and closes multiple times as he stutters on what to say. He avoids her stare and looks at the wall behind her. He sees the photo of his father and holds his gaze on it. He takes a deep breath to calm his nerves in whatever way he can.

“I have been going out to see my friends. That’s not a lie,” he tells the glass. “They’re wonderful people and they have helped me _so_ much, mom. This year wouldn’t be easy without them. They make me feel like I can do anything - and uh, just really...really helped me as I said...” He trails off. He closes his eyes and his throat hurts from the effort it takes to not start sobbing or scream at her or run out the front door. His mother doesn’t say anything, but he can still feel her eyes on him. He feels like a child again. Afraid, stupid, naive. Maybe he is still that way deep down. “And yeah, I’m gay, mom. I’ve been figuring that out for so long and I know what I love now. I wanted to tell you for so long...I - I just didn’t know how to get it out. What to say or how to do it…” he takes a deep breath and finally looks at her. She looks down at her hands and nods. She rolls her lips in tightly and her laugh comes through her nose in a short exhale. Eddie shifts on his feet, “Come on, mom, you can’t just sit there I need to you to say something, I can’t-“

“How long have you been seeing the Tozier boy?”

“How...how do you know-“

“Derry talks, honey.”

That sets him off inside. Whenever Maggie called him honey it always felt genuine. Full of actual love or care and make him feel comfortable. The way his mother says it at this moment feels cold and passive-aggressive and he wants to rip his hair out as he screams.

“What does it say?” his tone is flat. Anger slipping through it.

“All the parents know he’s different. The boys call him a fairy, don’t they? I always felt bad for his parents. Your only son…” she shakes her head. “I get it now.” she huffs a cold laugh, “Of course it would be that boy. Couldn’t leave you alone-“

“Since November.” Eddie interrupts. He clenches his jaw and fists to ease his bubbling rage. “I’ve been with him since a week after my birthday. I’m sorry,” he doesn’t know why he’s apologizing. He shouldn’t be. But he feels like he has to. “I don’t know what else to tell you. I’m not going to change anything, mom.”

Sonia sighs, “Eddie, I don’t have time for this.” Eddie is about to snap, say everything he feels, when she holds her hand up and speaks again, “I can’t stop you from doing this when you aren’t here. You will finish the semester off and the next will be here with me. You can only use the phone if I know who you are calling and if it is important.”

“What?” Eddie steps closer into the room, his arms open, eyes wide in shock.

“I should’ve never let you go to that school,” Sonia murmurs under her breath. “Look what happened to you.” she stands up from her chair. “Do not try to argue with me, Eddie. This is final.”

His breathing picks up and he clenches even harder in his fists, nails digging into his flesh. “You talk to me like I’m a child!”

Sonia ignores him and walks to the kitchen. A clear sign that she is done talking to him. Eddie backs up and storms up the stairs to his room. He throws his things down and slams the door shut. He grabs the pillow from his bed, puts it to his face, and screams. He screams loud and deep from his chest. Once he finishes, he hears the lock of his door click into place behind him.

He walks over and fidgets with the handle and the door doesn’t open. She locked him in. Eddie punches the pillow in quick, hard successions. He slides down against the door to the ground, hitting his ass on the carpet far too roughly. 

Then he starts to laugh and he can’t stop. He clutches the pillow to his face and laughs until he’s gasping. He thinks of his mother and Richie and that just makes him laugh harder. He leans against the footboard of the bed for support as he presses his lips together until his hysteria subsides. His face feels flushed and his hands are shaking. Eddie closes his eyes and hums a song, trying to force himself into serenity.

━━━━━━━━

Finals week was harder than Eddie ever expected. Not from the tests themselves, but knowing the sick deep feeling in his gut and his mother’s shrill voice in the back of his mind.

He rode home on Monday immediately after school and promised his mother that he didn’t see anyone outside of the classroom. Eddie doesn’t sleep well Monday night, so when he runs into Richie eventually on Tuesday, after keeping half an eye out for him all day yesterday, he's just exhausted and frustrated enough not to listen to his hormones.

Richie comes up to him like nothing; because he doesn’t know anything and that makes Eddie want to run out of the room. Richie looks good as usual and Eddie fights everything in him to not finish this test and ride into the sunset after with him. He wants to explain as quick as possible to Richie why: _Hey, we can’t see each other anymore and I can’t talk to you ever again and next semester I won’t be here so, sorry!_ but it is never that easy. 

Loving someone who is your best friend is never easy.

He tries his best to show he’s not in the mood to say anything or talk to Richie; hoping he sees it as finals being a nightmare and just putting him in a bad mood. Thing is, he doesn't expect Richie to leave him alone just like that. Richie keeps asking him what’s wrong, no matter how many times Eddie says _I’m tired._ and that makes Eddie even more agitated. 

After the test, Richie spends the entire class sucking up to Anderson, and he keeps looking over to Eddie for some sign of a smile or interest. Eddie keeps his head down and clenched his fist around his pencil. He knows Richie can tell something is up, but Eddie can’t look at him right now. It’ll just hurt more.

The bell is about to ring when Eddie almost gets the nerve to go grab Richie and tell him everything and why things will be the way they are. The loud sound reminds him of his mother and his body runs cold. His stomach twists into knots and when he makes the mistake of looking up and seeing Richie staring at him from across the room, he almost vomits. He stands up quickly and practically runs out of the room. He makes his way to the bathroom and locks himself inside one of the stalls.

Richie doesn’t follow him.

Woodshop was Eddie’s favorite class besides Biology and English. He loved to build things, even if they were small projects that really couldn’t be used by him or had no purpose outside of learning how to work the tools, but he loved woodshop. It also helped that the teacher was the coolest guy ever. He always came in with a positive attitude and that always made Eddie leave with one to match.

They had been working on a project for weeks now. Their final was a birdhouse. It’s a classic and common thing to build in woodshop but Eddie doesn’t mind it at all. It’s fun to him and once it’s painted and polished, he always feels a sense of pride at his good work.

Eddie hated today. He hated the two hours of his final and he wanted nothing more than to go home. He carves a shape into the side of the house and is careful to not think of the way Richie looked at him an hour ago and how his mother - fuck. The blade nicks his finger, something that rarely happens to him. When a class acquaintance asks if he's okay, Eddie throws him a glare and tells him to mind his own fucking business. He has no use for pity right now.

He gets bandaged up and finishes the birdhouse. His teacher gives him a simple cocked brow for concern and gives him his grade on the project. The A boosts his mood only for a minute and then it’s gone. He hates feeling sorry for himself and overthinking something that he can just _explain_ to Richie, but something is pulling him away from it. 

His mother’s voice in his head, the look on her face, the way she ripped the phone off his wall - that holds him back. Every time he looks at Richie he thinks of the fear that makes his chest harden and his legs get weak for the wrong reasons. Eddie has to tell Richie even if it hurts, he has to. Just not yet.

The bell rings and Eddie takes his project as he heads for the parking lot. An idea comes to him and he jogs to a car that’s parked under a tree on the bottom lot of the student parking lot. He waits by the white car, tapping his foot, and holds the birdhouse in both his hands and observes the people walking by and in front of him. Then, finally, who he’s looking for shows up.

“Oh, hey Eddie,” Stanley smiles warmly. The car beeps as he unlocks it. “Whatcha got there?”

“Birdhouse,” he pushes his hands out towards Stanley. “It’s for you. I made it in woodshop for my final and thought you’d like it.” 

He doesn’t need it himself, he’d probably just put it in the garage anyway, so he decides to give it to someone he cares about greatly and would use it. Plus, it always made him happy to make his friends happy, and he needed to feel happy right now.

Stanley stares at Eddie and then down at the birdhouse. He’s quiet and Eddie feels his whole body get heavy. He’s ready to spew out excuses that Stanley doesn’t need to have it if he doesn’t want it when he looks at Eddie again,

“This is for me?”

Eddie blinks and nods, “Yeah, I know you like birds so.” he clears his throat, “I know it’s kinda random and weird but-“

“Eddie, I love it,” Stanley’s words are fond and come out so gently it seems like this was the best thing Eddie had ever done for him. He takes the birdhouse from him and looks over it in his hands. “It’s perfect,” he smiles and puts the birdhouse down gently on the roof of his car, then pulls Eddie into a hug.

It’s gentle but strong enough that it feels genuine and loving. Eddie hugs him tightly back and bathes in the feeling of it. Stanley is the first to pull away and he takes the birdhouse into his hands again, putting it into the passenger seat with his backpack to keep it from falling, and Eddie smiles at him.

“I’m glad you like it.”

“Of course I like it, how could I not?” Stanley pats Eddie on his shoulder and smiles. He lets go and Eddie wants to hug him again. “Well, I have to get to work but thank you, Eddie. Really, thank you, I love it.”

“If you ever want me to make you anything just let me know.” Eddie chuckles lightly and Stanley nods.

“I will, now that I know you’ve got a knack for it.”

Eddie says goodbye to Stanley and begins walking home, despite his mother’s requests. He’s been going against her requests for weeks now but it feels different this time. Like he’s doing it because he has no other choice rather than doing it because he has one.

He passes by a neighbor walking their dog and that’s when he feels the familiar pain in his throat and the blurry vision at the bottom of his eyes and he doesn’t know why seeing that old lady triggered it, but she did. 

When he gets home, he stops at the side of the house. He throws his bike to nowhere and screams into the sleeve of his jacket. Tears fall with the pushing of his cheeks and he clenches them shut. He finishes and takes a deep breath and stands up. He wipes down his face and enters the house. He smells like sweat and his hands smell like wood and metal, but he's too tired to take a shower. He falls straight into bed and it takes him only minutes to sink into a deep sleep. 

He doesn't dream.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie was home alone, comfortable on the couch with blankets surrounding him. He was drifting off watching a show when a loud knock on the front door made him jump. He pads over to the door and looks through the top half where the window is, standing on his tippy toes.

“What the fuck?” Eddie swings open the door. “What are you doing here?”

Richie is standing in front of him. He looks like he hasn’t slept and just threw some warm clothes on to get here. His car is still on where it sits parked by the curb in front of Eddie’s place.

“I wanted to talk to you,” he says. “What the fuck happened with you? You haven’t been answering my calls and at school, you ignored me completely. Did I do something?”

Eddie bounces his leg, looking around behind Richie constantly, “Richie, you can’t be here-“

“I asked you what’s wrong, you can’t just tell me that quickly? Instead, I have to fucking sit there and think I did something wrong?”

“No, no, that’s not it!”

“Then what the fuck is it, Eddie?” Richie’s voice cracks and he takes a deep breath to steady himself. “I thought you’d want some space, so I left you alone, and then you never call me or come to my house or work or anything!”

“Richie,” Eddie steps closer to him. Not necessarily stepping outside into the cold, but close enough that they’re face to face. “We can talk later, alright? I just - I can’t do it right now. You shouldn’t be here,”

Richie’s eyebrows raise and he laughs, arms out, “Jesus,” he scoffs and shakes his head. “Fine, fine,” he holds his hands up and then they drop to his sides, smacking loudly in the rough slap. “Come talk to me when you figure whatever the fuck this is out,” he steps away from the front door, “I don’t have time for this, Eddie. I fucking don’t.”

“Rich-“

“If there is something I can do to help you out, I will. But you have to fucking _talk_ to me!”

Eddie’s words quiver and he clutches on the door tightly, “I can’t talk right now I told you that.”

“Whatever,” Richie walks down the porch and after stepping off the bottom step, he turns back around. “You know,” his words are calm now. Not in an angry way, but in so sorrowful it makes Eddie start to cry. “I have never gone for something _so_ passionately before.” his voice drops in volume as he chokes out, “I’ve never loved anyone like this.”

Before Eddie can say anything more, Richie turns around and gets in his car. He drives away, fast as usual, and then he’s gone. Eddie slams the front door shut and locks it as aggressively as he closed it. He kicks his mother’s chair as he walks by and sits back down onto the couch. He drops his head in his hands and lets a sob rack his body. 

He thinks about what Richie had said before he left. How sad he looked. How honest and broken he looked. The same way Eddie had been feeling for the past week. He curses at himself for not just saying everything and being real. Telling Richie the truth and hoping his mother saw Richie there so he could grab his things and go. But he fucking couldn’t.

Eddie laughs and leans back against the back of the couch. He stares up at the ceiling and wipes down his face. 

He sighs, “Never loved anyone like this…” he repeats Richie’s words. “God,” his body jumps up and down again as he starts to cry once more. “Neither have I,” he hides his face behind his hands. “Neither have I.”

━━━━━━━━

Saturday night, Richie goes to a party with Beverly and their friend Jake. Which really means him and Beverly leaning against a wall and laughing from a distance at Jake trying to talk to this girl he’s been trying to get with since freshman year. 

It's a pretty boring party. The kind that looks cool at first glance. One that has almost _too_ many people, loud music that the elderly would hate, no adults in sight - but turns out to be shitty. After a while of meaningless mocking and people watching, Beverly turns to look at him with a serious expression, eyes clear.

"Alright," she says, close to Richie’s ear so that she can talk over the music. "What's going on?"

Richies blinks at her, unease stirring in his stomach. "What?" he asks, eyes wide.

“We’ve been here for what, hours now, and you haven’t abandoned me yet?” Beverly crosses her arms and takes a sip from her cup. “Plus, you’ve been quieter than usual lately, my friend.”

"Yeah, well," Richie says. "Didn't feel like getting hammered or being a shitty friend tonight."

"Richie," Beverly says in that voice that reminds Richie of an overbearingly concerned mother and his mouth twists.

"What?" he demands. "I’m just tired from finals and work! It’s not that big of a deal!”

Beverly blinks at him and Richie huffs, moves away from her and makes his way outside. He goes to the front, the only empty part of the house, and sits on the porch with his shoulders hunched up and glares at the night sky.

After a while, Beverly comes outside and sits down next to him. She nudges his shoulder and he nudges back, maybe a little too hard to be friendly. Richie isn’t looking, but he knows Beverly is rolling her eyes, and he sighs. 

"Sorry," he says.

Beverly is the last person he would ever raise his voice at. There’s a multitude of reasons as to why, but the main one is that she doesn’t take shit from anyone - _especially_ him. Kind of person that’d call him out and make him feel like a dog with its tail between its legs. Tonight, though, she senses something is off and keeps her demeanor calm beside him.

"It's fine," Beverly tells him. "You know you can talk to me, right? I’m not one to judge if something is wrong,” she says after a minute of silence.

"Yeah." Richie exhales loudly. "Yeah, I...I just..."

"I get it," Beverly interrupts simply.

That’s why he loves her. It’s why he trusts her. She responds in it the simplest way of reading him, and he’s thankful for it. He can’t explain how he feels to her when he barely gets it.

"Thanks," Richie says, forced smile pushing slightly at his lips. "I just need to sort some stuff out."

"Alright," Beverly says.

Richie tilts his head towards Beverly and leans against her. He closes his mouth against the urge to spill everything right there on some stranger’s porch. She deserves to know what’s wrong. He hates leaving Beverly in the dark about, well, anything at all. 

But she never pokes at it. She always waits for him to explain first, but she always makes it known she cares the same way he cares about her. Richie plans to tell her at some point. Maybe get some advice on the whole thing or maybe even make him realize how he screwed up again.

Beverly rests her head against his and rests her hand on his knee, palm facing up, waiting for his. Richie puts his hand into hers and holds onto it tightly. He squeezes it and she gives an even stronger squeeze back.

━━━━━━━━

Waking up with nothing to do was the worst feeling Eddie has felt in a while. He couldn’t talk to anyone or go outside anymore. Granted, it was snowing and cold, but still. Riding around on his bike, running errands, or just sitting on the porch was something for him to get his mind off everything; and now his mother took that away too.

Eddie picks at the plate of food in front of him. He looks up to the living room where his mother is eating and watching one of her favorite shows. She’s laughing at something said by the host and Eddie’s hand clenches, tight enough to hurt, around the fork in his hand.

“Why do you hate me?” Eddie directs to her. He doesn’t know how he said it or why but it came out and can’t be taken back. He freezes up and his mother looks at him.

She mutes the television and faces him directly. Her brows are furrowed and knit close together, “Excuse me?” Eddie doesn’t answer her. He just stares back with wide eyes. “Eddie bear…” she stands up and makes her way to him. “I don’t hate you, dear. I love you more than you know,” she tells him. She puts her hand on his cheek and smiles, “I do what I do to protect you because I love you, not because of hate.” 

She pinches his cheek then places a kiss on his forehead. It intends to be warm and comforting but it comes off cold and stiff. Eddie nods and lets up on his fork. His skin spreads with red and white from where he held it in his palm and he starts to eat again.

She stands there for a second, thinking and watching, then goes back to her spot on the couch. She picks up the remote and unmutes the television. Her show blares out commentary again and Eddie stares down at his plate. Her laughter fills the room again in an instant.

“Eddie dear,” she says suddenly and Eddie jumps in his seat.

His head shoots up, “Yes, mom?”

“Finish up and come sit with me. I want you to watch this with me. We haven’t had time for each other and now that you’re on a break,” she smiles at him, “we can catch up.”

Eddie swallows the bite in his mouth and nods. “Okay,” he puts his fork down and smiles at her when he gets up with the plate.

The second his back is to her his smile drops. He dumps the leftovers into the trash, cleans off his utensils, and walks into the living room. He sits down beside her and she pulls him closer. She pushes him till his head rests in her lap and she cards her fingers through his hair.

He stares ahead as she laughs above him. The television is a blur of color as he stares blankly at it and lets himself zone out. He doesn’t laugh when she does, or even make a sign of paying attention. He’s sure she knows he’s gone cold under her touch, but he doesn’t care.

Eddie loops his fingers around the collar of his shirt and forms a fist around the fabric. His eyes drift down to the carpet and he feels a wave of drowsiness hit him. He wants to sleep but with his mother so close, he can’t. Instead, he continues to daydream and make faces out of the markings on the carpet.

━━━━━━━━

Richie goes to work on Monday morning and thankfully, Bill’s schedule lines up with his for the week. It’s a rare thing that happens for them and when it does happen, Richie is more than ecstatic about it. And Bill makes work and everything else going on fade away when he and Richie get to joke around the shop.

This time he walks into the shop with no visible joy to see Bill behind the counter. He’s glad to see his best friend counting up the cash and doing routine before the shop opens, but he can’t bring himself to have the facade of happiness. He’s too tired for it.

Bill looks up at the sound of the overhead bell ringing and throws Richie a smile.

“Morning,” he says, closing the register and clicking it into place.

Richie waves and gets his name tag clipped on. He moves to the backroom and tosses his things in his locker. He presses his forehead against the metal once it’s shut and takes a deep breath. He rubs his eyes behind his glasses and slaps himself on the cheeks a few times. He shakes his arms out and walks out to the front.

He runs through the rest of the day on auto-pilot, even though it makes Bill look worried during their lunch break. He says, "Just tired," an explanation and, well, he is. His mind has been yelling at him for weeks now and he stays up all night thinking. He just feels exhausted and pointless at the moment, not sure where he stands with anything.

Bill reaches out and rubs the back of his neck just slightly, and Richie raises his head, smiles sleepily at him.

“Wanna t-talk about it?” Bill asks, taking a bite from his sandwich.

Richie laughs, “I’m just tired, told you that, man.”

Bill shrugs. “I know,” he finishes his food off and tosses it into the trash. He clocks in again after and fixes his uniform, “But I _know_ you, R-Richie.” and then he’s walking out to the front again.

Richie looks down at his bag of chips and the radio in the break room plays a quiet tune of _Last Christmas_ and he wants to slam his face into the table. He throws the bag away and goes back to work.

Bill was already gone while Richie closed up shop. He sweeps around in silence and there’s an odd comfort to it. He dances slightly with the broom (an impulse, really) and goes as slow as he can. Going home isn’t the best option right now. Being distracted with cleaning is.

Eventually, he finishes cleaning up the entire store, turning off the lights, and locks the front and back doors. His mind is foggy and sluggish, and he pulls on his jacket tighter and heads towards his car in the back. The harsh cold and snow hit his face but he pays no mind. The cold almost clears his head.

He gets inside his car but doesn’t start it fully. He puts the key in to start the radio. No more silences. He looks ahead at the brick wall of the shop while Christmas songs sing in his ears. He doesn’t think of anything when he spaces out.

The song fades and the recognizable synth of _Last Christmas_ starts again and Richie closes his eyes. He’s considering going to the inner part of town and maybe stop by his favorite record store. It’s where he always went after work or school. He always intended to bring Eddie there one day and let him pick anything out.

George Michael sings _Merry Christmas_ in a whisper and Richie laughs. His head drops forward and his forehead hits the top part of the steering wheel. He clenches his jaw and inhales sharply through his nose.

“Merry fucking Christmas,” Richie mumbles. 

He sits up, sharp and sudden, and buckles up. He starts the engine and grips onto the wheel. He drives towards the record store when he remembers that it will be closed at this time. Thankfully _Wham!_ finishes and the song transitions into one of the hundreds of covers of _Jingle Bells_ and he heads for home.

━━━━━━━━

Stanley opens the door to a smiling Eddie on the other side. Eddie had felt particularly lonely today, and his mother was out for the day, so he took advantage of it. He wanted to see someone he knew would be up to just sitting at home and doing nothing too thought-provoking. He could’ve hung out with Mike, but Mike was always busy with work, same with Bill and Ben. Eddie liked Stanley. He liked Stanley more than he realized sometimes. Stanley was kind. He was funny in that way that made no sense and Eddie needed to be around him.

They rode their bikes around town for a few hours. Talking about things that they would forget tomorrow. Plans they had for the break if they had any. They stopped by a restaurant that Stanley and Eddie both liked and got some food to go. The Uris’ were out for work, leaving Eddie and Stanley alone at the dinner table with their takeout.

They didn’t talk much as they ate. But Stanley noticed the look Eddie had on his face all day. He smiled but it didn’t feel like an Eddie Kaspbrak smile. Stanley spun the fork around his fingers. His tongue pokes at the inside of his cheek as he thinks and then he puts the fork down, stabbing the food to hold it still. He crosses his arms, “Did something happened?”

“What do you mean?” Eddie looked up to meet his gaze.

“You’re different,” Stanley says. He nods at him. “I can tell you’re different.”

Eddie put down his fork, almost too aggressively, “Well I’m not.”

“That could've been a positive observation.” Stanley glares. He pushes the plate aside and leans back against the chair. “But what you just did makes it negative.” he raises an eyebrow.

Eddie sighs, “Why do you want to know anyway?”

“Because you tell me things even if you don't want to.” Stanley leans forward on his elbows. He looks Eddie in the eyes as he speaks. “Why else would I be here then? You’re bored and you haven’t been acting like yourself lately. You haven’t been out much, ignoring everyone’s calls, not going to the parties Bev invites us to.” he scoots even closer. “So tell me, what is it?”

The way Stanley looked at Eddie was like he could somehow break in and see right through. Eddie avoided his eyes at all costs. Looking around at the kitchen or the door behind his head. He felt uneasy, knowing how this always went. In the past it’d been he complained and Stanley asked, but now he was forcing the answer out. Stanley would never push it, but Eddie’s fear was of not being able to hold back how he felt.

“It’s nothing, alright?” Eddie tries to bite back but he sounds weaker than anything.

Stanley’s mouth hangs open and he scoffs, laughing even. He sits back against the chair and shakes his head. “It’s Richie isn’t it?” he sighs, “why wouldn’t it be-“

“Don’t blame him.” Eddie’s face scrunches up in anger. “Not everything has to do with him.”

“Sometimes I feel like it does, but this? Come on, Eddie. Is he why you haven’t been around the group lately? No parties because you know he’s there? Shit like that?” when Eddie didn't respond she shook her head. “Does anyone else know something is up?”

Eddie played with the remains of his food, pressing his tongue to his cheek. “I haven’t said anything to anyone, but it’s probably noticeable.” he laughs uncomfortably.

“Come to think of it…” Stanley’s brows furrow and he scratches at his chin. “Richie has been pretty fucked up, more than usual, at a past few parties. Beverly told me he snapped at her, didn’t tell her what was wrong, but still.” he sighs, “It’s affecting both of you - whatever happened.”

Eddie laughs, rolling his eyes, “Yeah, something happened, alright? Is that what you wanted to hear?”

“Eddie, I’m asking because I give a shit.”

“Well, I don’t want to talk about it!”

“Eddie.” Stanley presses. “You look like you're not in the best place, same with Richie. I’m not saying you need to tell me what is wrong and every little detail of what happened, but I’m asking you to help me out here.” he shook his head, “You usually look ecstatic to talk about Richie, even if it’s to rag on him, and now you don’t. It’s obvious something happened and I’m sure the entire group can tell.”

“How would anyone know that?”

“Friends who pay close attention and care about you guys would know that.”

Eddie looked at Stanley. He didn't look concerned or worried, and that’s what he loved. Ben and Bill expressed how they felt too much, whether the advice was good or not. Beverly was always too straight to the point, Mike cared a lot but never knew what to say besides how much he cared. But Eddie wanted realism. He wanted it but in a way that didn’t feel condescending. Stanley was stern and every word, empathetic or not, had a sense of truth.

Eddie leans forward, forehead in his hands. “My mom saw us, me and Richie, and she lost her shit. Said she’s going to take me out of school. I’m not allowed to use the phone, which is why I haven’t called any of you or been out. She wants to lock me the fuck up in my own house.” he lets out a shaky breath. “I didn’t tell Richie what happened because I didn’t know what to say or how to explain it. I felt like my mom was waiting around the corner, waiting to see me talk to Richie inside and outside of school.”

Stanley frowns, “Why don’t you tell him now?”

“We tried to talk and it just turned into a huge fucking fight. He probably hates me now,” Eddie chuckles. 

“I don't think Richie could ever hate you,”

“Well, then he probably thinks I hate him and that he did something wrong when it was me who fucked up by being scared of my own fucking mother.”

Stanley sits and taps his finger on the table. “How long has it been? Since you last talked?”

“Two weeks,” he says, almost too quickly. “What happened with my mom was not long after the break.”

“I don’t know what to tell you other than to talk to him. Explain everything. I mean, come on, he’s only pissed because he doesn’t know the reason why you were so standoffish. He made it clear when you fought that he was angry, and you know it’s only because he’s confused and you just dropped him out of nowhere.” Stanley offers him a soft smile. “I’m sure if you talked, said everything you felt, and vice versa, it’ll be alright.”

“What if he doesn’t want to talk?”

“Then you wait till he does.”

Eddie groans and rubs at his eyes with his hands “I fucked this up so badly. By doing something so fucking stupid, Stan. Who just stops talking to their boyfriend because their mom says so?”

“It happens.” Stanley chuckles. He reaches over and pats Eddie’s hand on the table that is clenched around a napkin in a fist. “It’ll be alright.”

Eddie looks at Stanley. He sighs and the gentle expression in his friends' eyes almost makes him cry again.

“I can’t have him think I don’t love him.”

Stanley laughs. “I don’t think you have to worry about that.”

He picked up his fork and plate. He takes Eddie’s as well and moves to the kitchen. He washes off the dishes and sets them into the dishwasher. When he comes back, Eddie follows him out to his bedroom. He stops in the doorway of the bedroom and says softly,

“Thanks,” he looks across the room at the birdhouse on the desk, smiles, and stares back at Stanley. 

Stanley flops down onto his bed, curls, and body bouncing with the impact on the bed. He picks up his book from the nightstand and flips to where his bookmark pokes out the top. “Anything for you.” he sighs.

He moves his feet up towards himself Eddie can join him on the bed. Eddie scoots up and lays down on the pillow beside him. He rests his head on Stanley’s shoulder and looks ahead. He falls asleep to the face of Malcolm McDowell looking back at him.

━━━━━━━━

Eddie doesn’t mind cleaning. It can be soothing and some weird type of therapy. He cleans to get his mind off things, to waste time, and to feel good about himself. Nothing makes him feel better than a clean room and made bed.

He digs through his desk drawers and organizes what he wants to keep. One drawer has old notes from school he kept to look back on. Another has photos and polaroids of old friends he barely sees or never sees, along with his culmination certificate from elementary. In the top drawer is all his newly gained things.

He gathers up the pile and sits down with it on the floor. There’s a faded wrist band for a concert he went to with a friend from his old school, a few bracelets Beverly had bought him, and a baseball card of Sandy Koufax that Bill gave to him after he lost a bet. Eddie smiles fondly and underneath them, is a bunch of photos.

They’re of everyone at parties, kickbacks, and some of them just hanging around. Stanley always took them. If they were lucky, the group would manage to get Stanley in the photos. One of them is Beverly and Eddie sitting in the backyard of Bill’s house. She’s got her arm slung around him and he’s doing the same. They both have overly big smiles on their faces. Eddie sets the photo aside to frame it or hang it up later.

There are a few photos from a party that are slightly blurry or they look so drunk Eddie has to keep them hidden. He doesn’t know why he has a photo of Mike holding up Ben for a keg-stand but he’s glad he does. The way everyone around them is cheering and the look on Stanley’s face makes Eddie laugh loud enough to wake his mother from her nap downstairs.

He puts the others aside and then the laughter is gone. He finds a pile of polaroids and regular photos that have been held together by a paperclip. It’s all his photos of Richie and ones of the two of them.

Eddie takes off the clip and starts shuffling through them. There’s one of Richie laying on his bed with a stupid look on his face. Behind it is a set of polaroids. Eddie remembers that day well. 

He had gone to Richie’s after school and they had the house to themselves. Richie managed to make him laugh so hard that day he cried. Later on, he snatched up Richie’s polaroid camera when he was changing and took a series of photos of him. One was with his bareback turned to Eddie, the next is him turning around, and the last was Richie trying to do an over the top model pose he swore he saw in a woman’s magazine once.

The other polaroids were just the two of them or Richie solo again. Other photos that Beverly took of them beside the campfire in his backyard. Eddie set the photo aside with the one of him and Beverly.

He reaches the end of the pile and it hits him. He sits up on his knees and looks into the somewhat empty drawer. In the corner is the pin Richie had bought for him from the fair and next to it was the mixtape he made. Eddie grabs the tape and sits back down on his haunches.

He reads the words on the front again, taking in Richie’s weird mix of shitty and good handwriting, and lets out a broken chuckle. He stands up and pops open the plastic. He puts the tape into his player and starts it up. Once he pushes down on the play button and skips to the track he wants, he sits back down on the floor and rests his head back on the desk.

He lets _No One Like You_ fill the void of silence in his room. He keeps the volume low and the drums on his thighs to the rhythm. He takes a deep breath and sinks further down across the floor.

“Alright, Eds,” he whispers to himself, eyes shut, “you can do it. You’re gonna do it. You have to.” he opens his eyes and looks at the calendar on the wall across from him. Christmas is in three days and that worries him for the reasons he wishes it didn’t. “Soon,” he promises himself.

He cleans up the photos and puts them neatly back into the drawer. He picks up the two and pins them to his wall over his bed. He adjusts them so they sit straight and perfectly aligned with one another and he smiles at the images of Richie and Beverly.

━━━━━━━━

****

DECEMBER 24, 1993

Eddie stands in front of his dresser. His mother is downstairs talking to family as the music plays loudly throughout the house. It’s quieter once it reaches upstairs, but Eddie can still hear Frank Sinatra’s calming voice.

It’s Christmas Eve and he’s upstairs alone. Staring at his clothes. He’s got his pants and boots on and his black undershirt on. He can’t decide on what sweater to wear. They can all fit the Christmas spirit, but he’s still indecisive. This is serious business!

His cousins are downstairs and he knows his mother is going to force him to talk to them and that makes him even more annoyed as he thinks about it.

The song downstairs changes and he’s expecting another cheesy Christmas song that has been redone over and over, yet always makes Eddie sing, to come on. But instead, a love song plays. It’s fitting, the whole love and family thing for Christmas, but the song itself makes Eddie freeze.

 _Pledging My Love_ is humming through the house. Eddie feels a flash of cold heat come over him when Johnny Ace is singing and his family is laughing below him. The song is when Eddie makes his decision. It’s been too long of letting things not go his way. 

The brown fair isle sweater he wore on the second day of school. The same one he met Richie in.

 _I’ll forever love you, for the rest of my days,_ Johnny Ace sings and it feels louder in Eddie’s quiet room.

He grabs his keys from his desk and shoves them into his pocket. He grabs a thick jacket from his closet and slings it on quickly. He hurries down the stairs and his Uncle slams into him.

“Eddie!” he exclaims, hugging him.

_I’ll never part from you,_

“Hey! Uh, I gotta head out really quick, I’ll be back later,” Eddie rushes out and moves past him.

_Or your loving ways,_

His Uncle stares at him, confused, and Eddie swings open the front door and leaves his home. He’s met with the cold wind and dragged in snow crunching under his feet. As he walks down the porch steps and shoves his hands into his jacket pockets, he can hear the song finish through the door.

Eddie walks past the row of houses all lit up with lights and decorations. He could see silhouettes of people through curtains and trees through windows. It warmed him up inside and made him walk faster.

It takes him fifteen minutes to get to the street he was looking for. He walks faster and tries to avoid slipping on ice. The snow hits his face harder with the speed of his walking but he doesn’t care. His heart is beating in his ears and his blood is on fire.

He slows down when he comes up the street and repeats words of encouragement in his head. He walks up the porch to the Tozier residence and knocks at the door, avoiding the reef hanging on it.

In the middle of his monologue inside his head, the door opens quick. Eddie freezes and all confidence fizzles out.

“Oh, Eddie,” Wentworth says, surprised at his presence, “Richie didn’t tell us you’d be coming.”

The inside of the house is decorated, from what Eddie can see behind him. There is also the sound of people talking, laughing, and music playing. Eddie’s throat gets tighter and his heart feels it could fall out of his ass. He forgot about Richie’s family. How could he forget about that?

“I, uh,” Eddie fidgets with his key in his pocket and wants to look away from Wentworth, but he can’t. It’s as if freezing in place also applied to where he looked. He takes a deep breath and forces out what he needs to say, “Can I talk to Richie for a moment?”

Wentworth looks at him strangely, like he’s trying to figure out why Eddie is there through his appearance alone, then nods. “Yeah, I’ll go get him.” He keeps the door open and leaves Eddie standing there.

Eddie’s mind starts to think of everything all at once. He could turn around and run. He could talk to Richie like an adult and figure everything out. But what if Richie doesn’t want that? What if he’s over Eddie already and he’s the obsessive one? What if-

The light from inside is eclipsed by a figure standing in front of him. Eddie feels the blood drain from his face. It’s cold, and he knows he looks like he’s been outside, but he looks paler now with Richie standing in front of him.

He’s not wearing his glasses and Eddie can see the shadows under his eyes, but he still looks handsome. He’s got his slippers on, those black jeans Eddie always thought made his legs look nice, and an ugly Christmas sweater that screams: Richie. He looks _good_. 

Eddie’s breath catches in his throat for a second, but he manages to get out, “Hi,” but it’s more of a cracked sigh.

“Hey,” Richie says quickly. He nods his head, rolling his lips in, and grips onto the door with one hand. He takes Eddie in, “Why are you here?”

Eddie’s chest twinges at the words. They sound harsh but broken down. He shifts uncomfortably on his feet in the cold.

“Uh, I, uh,” he scratches at the cold hitting his cheek and avoids Richie’s eyes. “I wanted to talk to you.”

“It’s Christmas Eve-“

“I know.” Eddie looks up. “I know, but please. I’ll make it quick.”

Richie is silent for a moment. It lasted for only a few seconds, but Eddie feels it goes on forever. 

“Alright,” Richie huffs. He steps aside, “We’ll talk in my room.”

Eddie hits his boots against the frame of the doorway to shake any snow off before stepping into the warmth of the home. When taking off his jacket, without thinking, Richie grabs at the sleeves. Eddie stops shrugging his shoulders and Richie’s hands go tense. Richie lets go, mumbles something under his breath, and Eddie gets the jacket off as quickly as he can. He hangs it on the hook and Richie starts walking up the stairs. Eddie catches a glance at the living room and spots it full of Richie’s relatives. He feels like a stranger intruding and the regret of coming on a spur of the moment decision is back.

But Richie didn’t slam the door in his face, so that gives him some hope.

His bedroom is made up for the occasion and Eddie stands in the center of it awkwardly. Richie shuts the door behind him, moves over the bed, and sits down. He pats the spot beside him and folds his hands in his lap. Eddie sits, but there’s an obvious gap between them.

“So…” Richie breaks the silence.

Eddie stares down at his shoes. He fidgets with the cuff of his sleeves and bounces his leg; which he doesn’t notice till Richie’s hand is on his thigh to stop it. Eddie finally looks over at Richie. The look in his expecting eyes makes Eddie want to turn back time and fix everything. This is the best he can do.

“Rich…” Eddie closes his eyes and focuses. He takes a deep breath to control his voice, “I wanna say sorry, maybe a hundred times over, but I know that it’s overused and has no meaning. No matter how much I mean it.” his breathing shakes and he scoots closer to Richie, “Problem is I can’t find any other words to say that means the same fucking thing I’m trying to - fuck, I don’t know. I fucked up.” his voice falls quiet, “I fucked up so badly. I was so...afraid and angry at everything, myself, my mom - you? I don’t know why I was mad at you, you didn’t _do_ anything! I pushed all of that onto you and it was fucked up. I know it was - I _knew_ but I,” and now he’s shaking. Great. “I still fucking did it!” he laughs, cheeks pushing up against his wet eyes, “I couldn’t just _fucking_ tell you right away what was wrong and how we could work it out and-and-“

“Eddie,” Richie reaches for him. He places his hands on his shoulders, dragging them down his arms and down to his hands in that soothing way that always comforted him. Richie holds his hands and dips his head down so he can get Eddie to look up at him once again. “What didn’t you tell me?”

A beat passes between them. The room is completely silent and Richie waits. He watches Eddie closely for anything. Downstairs, muffled by the bedroom door, music plays and family laugh amongst each other. 

“My mom saw us that one time you dropped me off.” Eddie looks up from their intertwined hands. “The time I thought she wasn’t home? Yeah, she saw us.”

“Why didn’t you-“

“I didn’t tell you because I was scared too! I don’t know why, but I was. Maybe my mom’s words were there and the things she was saying, okay?” his voice starts to pick up in volume and speed. “And how I was told how much I’m fucked up? I’m the fucked up one? I’ve been told that my entire life by her and she couldn’t think to look in a fucking mirror? Then she tells me all this shit about how all the parents in Derry talk and that they always knew something with you was bound to happen. She probably thinks you fucked with me or something to make things this way but no! This is just me! I fucking met you because you walked into the same class as me! Then that got her going, shit did that do it for her! Now she’s telling me she’s pulling me out of that school and that I have to stay with her again and I can’t!” he stops. His breath labored and panting. “I can’t, Richie,” he whispers, choked tears behind it. “I can’t be around her anymore.”

Richie is staring at him like a thousand things are running through his mind. His eyes darting over Eddie’s face with a tightly furrowed brow of concern. Like he doesn’t know what to say or do.

He licks his lips, mouth opening to speak, but nothing comes out for a second. “W-well when you’re eighteen-“

“That’s not for another whole fucking year, Rich.”

“I...I don’t-“

“I have family way better than her I could live with, but I can’t leave Derry.” he looks deep into Richie’s eyes and squeezes their held hands. “I can’t leave you guys. Not yet.”

Richie sighs. “Eddie...you can go-“

“I know I can, but-“

“No. Eddie,” he leans forward and the gap between them is gone. “You need to get out of this town. Go with whatever the hell relatives and live.” Eddie stares at him. Richie smiles softly, “You say you guys but...I know you mean me mostly.” he looks sad. Sadder than the way he had when Eddie stood on the other side of the threshold and it makes Eddie’s chest feel heavy. “You can’t do that. You need to start somewhere new, and honestly, I think I’ve caused more problems for you than good things.”

Now he’s crying fully. No holding back now. “My mom would’ve acted the same fucking way with a girlfriend,” Eddie manages to get out through quivering words.

Richie tilts his head, nose scrunching with the face he makes, “Yeah, but,” he shrugs.

“Richie, I would rather run away and have my face end up on a missing poster than leave you.”

“I mean, you technically already broke up with me so…” Eddie glares at him and his smile drops. “Sorry,” he mumbles.

Eddie turns his body completely towards Richie. He removes his hands from the hold and places both of them on Richie’s thighs, getting his full attention. He then moves them and cups his face, “You must be fucking crazy to think that you have made my life worse by being in it.” he sniffles and clears his throat. “I have had more fun these past few months than I had my entire life. All because you walked into that class late from a trip and decided to sit next to me at the back of the room. If you had never talked to me and invited me to lunch I...I don’t think I’d be as happy as I am - ignoring what happened lately of course.” he smiles and Richie smiles back at him. “But seriously, Richie. You and your shitty jokes are the best thing to come into my life.” he rubs his thumb over his cheek and whispers, “I wouldn’t know what it feels like to love and be loved without you.”

“You mean that?”

“I showed up on your doorstep on Christmas Eve in the blistering cold, of course I mean it.”

Richie takes Eddie’s hands from his face, “You love me?” Eddie frowns, confused. “You still love me?”

“I never stopped.”

And then in an instant, Richie’s lips are on his. He lets go of Eddie’s hands to cup his face and deepens the kiss, and Eddie freezes at first. Then the feeling hits and his mind chants a mantra of _Richie Richie Richie_.

He sighs into the kiss and fists the ugly sweater into his palms. He pulls Richie closer to him, not letting Richie go for a second. He smiles against his lips and everything in his mind is pushed behind. All he focuses on is the way Richie swipes his tongue over his bottom lip and how Richie’s thumbs push into the sides of his throat when he kisses with such fervor.

He missed this. He missed this feeling so much that the feeling of Richie on him again feels like a weight being lifted off his shoulders. He missed Richie more than he ever realized.

Richie breaks off the kiss and rests his forehead against Eddie’s. He huffs, laughing, “Sorry,”

“Why are you apologizing?”

“Didn’t warn you or anything,” Richie giggles. “Just hearing you admit to loving me gets me going, you know?”

Eddie pushes him away and his laugh belts out loud enough that he’s sure the family knows he’s up here. Eddie shakes his head and tries to fight off laughing, but he can’t with Richie looking so joyful.

Once Richie gathers some sort of composure, he pulls Eddie into his lap, “So what are we-I mean, what are you gonna do?” he plays with the patterns in Eddie’s sweater. “Your mom...school?”

“Dunno,” Eddie wraps his arms around Richie’s neck, smiling down at him, “But I’ll come up with something; because I’m never letting this go again.” he kisses Richie, and it’s more gentle this time around. Softer.

“Okay,” Richie whispers as they separate. “Whatever you plan on doing, I’ll wait.”

“It’s not gonna be easy-“

“I know it isn’t. Just gotta wait till you can get out of that house and I’ll swoop you up and we can ride off into the sunset together.”

Eddie chuckles, “The same car?”

“But of course! She’s a beaut and I have too many memories of you in it.”

“Very sentimental.”

“I’m a sentimental guy!”

“I know you are, but I was hoping that car because it’s so nice.” Eddie smiles, “Great model, might I add.”

Richie rolls his eyes and shoves Eddie off his lap and onto the bed. He stands up and shakes his head, looking down at Eddie as he laughs. “You always do that! Get me all lovey-dovey and then you crack a joke.”

“Sounds like someone I know.”

“Oh!” Richie snaps his fingers as he remembers. “I’ve been holding onto that dress your mom wanted-”

“Wait, how did you know about that? I didn’t tell you anything?”

Richie smiles, “I’m a _great_ observer.”

“More like a stalker-”

“I was gonna give it to you for her y’know? Christmas gift and all, but,” Richie inhales sharply through his teeth and shrugs.

Eddie rolls his eyes. “Just give it to your mom or something.”

Richie looks at Eddie for a second. There is no clear expression on his face, but it isn’t judgemental. It’s like he’s thinking of something else to say or maybe just wants to look at Eddie a little longer.

“Alright, alright,” he holds his hand out and pulls Eddie up. He adjusts his roughed-up hair and sweater, “We should get back down there,”

“We?” Eddie asks eyebrow raised, fixing his clothes to look as sharp as possible.

“Yeah, we!” Richie scoffs. He fixes a stray hair from Eddie’s perfectly combed part and claps his hands together when they both look proper. “You’re celebrating this Christmas with me.”

“Oh, Rich, I-“

“Nope! Your family can live without you for one holiday. Plus,” he bends down, whispering, “my mom kinda missed you.”

Eddie smirks, “More than she would miss you?”

“Dude, if I disappeared and not you, I think she’d be okay with that.”

“Fine, I guess I’ll stay,” Eddie shoves past Richie and opens the bedroom door. He turns around on his heels to face Richie. “How do I look? Tozier family meeting worthy?”

Richie eyes him up and down. He smiles, “Cute,” he steps closer, “Cute,” and one more step and he’s toe to toe with Eddie. “Cute!” he kisses Eddie and pinches his cheek. Eddie smacks his hand away and steps aside.

“You go first, it would be weird if you didn’t.”

Richie grabs his hand tugs him behind down the hall. “I can’t wait for you to meet Grandpa Joe,” he looks over his shoulder. His smile is beaming and his eyes are twinkling. “He’s got the weirdest fucking stories, dude. Always makes me laugh because they make zero sense.”

“You do the same thing!”

“Hey! My stories make sense!”

“Sometimes they do,” Eddie laughs.

Richie chuckles, “Exactly!”

They turn left to the kitchen and Richie shoves Eddie in front of him. He holds him by the shoulders and they face towards the oven. Eddie relaxes at the sight of Maggie. Her back is turned to them as she checks on the food.

Two little kids run past Richie and Eddie and through the kitchen and out to the dining room. Maggie shoots up, slamming the oven door shut, and whips around.

“No running!” She yells. 

They laugh, ignoring her orders, and Maggie groans. She wipes her hands off on her apron. She looks at them in the doorway but doesn’t think twice. She starts rambling about the kids and takes the apron off. She folds it angrily and puts it on the island.

“When do you think dinner will be ready?” Richie asks, getting her out of her shpiel.

“Ten minutes,” and she looks at them again and her eyes go wide. She yells and the pair jump in shock. She runs around the island and pulls Eddie into a hug. She gasps and rocks them back and forth. “Oh my god!” she pulls him back by his shoulders, looking over him, “It’s been so long!” she hugs him again, almost too tight, “Oh, honey, you look so good! So handsome!”

Eddie struggles to laugh in her arms, “Thank you,” she lets him go and he smiles.

“Is everything alright?” she asks, but her eyes flicker to Richie. Almost like she’s asking him a different question than Eddie.

“Yeah,” Eddie smiles. “Everything is really good.”

Richie grabs Eddie’s hand, “Eddie’s gonna stay with us for tonight if that’s okay?”

“Of course! You don’t have to ask.” She moves back to the food and starts checking on a pot over the stove. “Go say hello to everyone while I get the dinner ready.”

Richie takes no time and drags Eddie to the living room. Everyone is sitting on the couch and in extra chairs brought in and set up around the room. The room is completely decorated for the festivities and the fireplace is going. It feels homey and warm and Eddie never wants to leave. He meets everyone with a quick introduction and sits down next to Richie on one of the sets of chairs back the patio door.

Eddie sips on the glass of wine Richie had brought him a few minutes later and watches the family from his spot. 

Richie is talking to one of his Aunts. Hands flailing with the retelling of something important. Then a man comes by with a baby girl in his arms and he hands her over to Richie’s aunt. Richie gasps and starts talking to the baby; finger moving in front of her face and she laughs. Her tiny arms moving up and down aggressively with her laughter.

Eddie’s hand grips tightly around the glass. He has his arm wrapped across himself and his hand that rests at his side, clenches at the fabric. The scene in front of him is so fucking cute he wants to rush up there and marry Richie on the spot.

When Richie is back to sitting next to him with his hand on Eddie’s lower back and hidden from everyone, he smiles. He relishes in the feeling of it. And if Eddie scoots his chair a smidge closer just so he and Richie’s legs can touch, that’s something only they know.

━━━━━━━━

In between a few afternoon shifts at the auto body shop he started working at during the break, in between going home to change clothes just before he leaves for another night at Richie’s place, in between friends and work, it feels like Eddie blinks and suddenly it's New Year's Eve.

A friend of Bill’s is throwing a party while his parents are on vacation. Leaving them with a house filled with drunk, stumbling teenagers. A few girls on the makeshift dance floor are exaggeratedly moving their hips, pretending not to be aware of the guys on the sidelines, they lean their shoulders back against the wall and throw clandestine glances at them.

Eddie has no idea where Bill and Mike are and he goes into the host’s kitchen to check the time. It’s shortly after ten and he doesn’t know if he can handle it much longer. Too many bodies and people for him. He finally leaves the smoke-hazy room to catch a breath of fresh air, outside on the terrace.

He tips his face up at the dark sky, closes his eyes and inhales deeply, slowly, and he looks out to the sleeping neighborhood. It’s the first time Richie isn’t at a party with them and it feels odd. Spending a holiday about partying and midnight kisses without him.

Eddie goes back inside and runs into Mike’s chest. He’s got his hands filled with cups and he lifts them so they don’t spill. He tells Mike that he’s leaving and to tell Bill, then hugs the man goodbye and escapes out the back door. He hops the fence on the side and almost tears his pants on the way down. He curses, wipes his body off of dust from the wood, and goes to the bus stop.

The ride over to Richie’s place isn’t a long one. The next bus stop is only ten minutes away with stoplights and drunkards ambling over the street without paying the traffic any mind. He gets off the bus at the stop and walks the three minutes to Richie’s. He rounds the corner of the street and stops in front of the house. He shoves his hands further into his pockets and pulls the jacket tighter around his body. There’s the muffled sound of neighboring parties and open windows dispelling laughter. It takes Eddie a moment to realize that Richie’s window isn't dark; there's a dim glow of light behind the curtains. 

Eddie’s breath catches and stumbles in his throat, and he has to swallow once, deliberately, for things to go back to normal. He flips open the mailbox and digs at the back where a crook sticks out and takes out the spare key that Richie told him about a while back. He walks up the porch and unlocks the front door. He calls out into the home, Maggie nor Wentworth are in the living room or kitchen.

There’s the sound of running footsteps and then Richie swinging around the corner at the top of the steps. His panicked expression drops immediately at the sight of Eddie and he smiles fondly at him. 

The gratitude surging through Richie is almost frightening as he runs down to Eddie anyway and scoops him up in his arms. He spins them around and Eddie laughs loud and wild. Richie puts him down and kisses him once, twice, three times, then sighs.

Eddie’s nose scrunches up in the cute way Richie always adored, “You smell like cigarettes and burritos. It's disgusting."

Richie ignores it. “Aren’t you supposed to be at a party?”

Eddie raises one shoulder and he picks up the sound of the record player playing softly upstairs. “Too many smokers and half-naked chicks, kind of boring.”

"So that's why you're here?" Richie asks.

"Yeah," Eddie says, then shakes his head. "No."

"No?" Richie repeats, questioning.

Eddie smiles, “It didn’t feel right spending New Year’s Eve without you. Need that midnight kiss and all.”

The next thing he knows, Richie’s pulling him close, and he’s clutching at his shoulders to steady himself while Richie drags him into the house, the door falling shut behind them.

They barely make it up the stairs and to Richie’s room and his bed before they're grinding against each other, Richie’s torn up t-shirt he always wore to bed hanging off one arm and Eddie’s jeans shoved down to his knees. Eddie closes his eyes and arches his back and sighs as the warm feeling in his chest comes back and fills his body.

"It’s A Wonderful Life is lame. Total snoozer."

"Shut up." Richie can’t find the energy to sit up from his spot to glare at Eddie. Plus, Eddie isn’t one to talk about good movies.

"No, seriously. It's so lame." Eddie props himself up on his elbows, stretching out on the couch while he reaches for the remote and pauses the tape. "I know you’ve got some decent stuff in there.”

When Richie finally does sit up and props his socked feet onto the coffee table, Eddie is over by the cabinet and digging through the movies. His profile is outlined in the dim light by the blue television screen. Richie inexplicably short of breath, even if it's just for a moment. 

“We don’t have a lot of Christmas movies in there,” he says. “Not the biggest fan.”

Eddie’s gaze flickers over to him, then away just as quickly. "Well, you need more. This is just sad." He pauses. When he speaks again, Richie thinks there's a trace of delight to Eddie’s low voice. "Home Alone! Oh come on,” he whips around and holds the worn down tape up, “This is a good one. Way better than some crusty old forties film.”

Richie laughs and his eyes move to the clock on the wall, "It's a quarter to midnight."

"Oh." Eddie appears to hesitate, then he sets the movie down onto the table for later. He shuts the movie cabinet and moves back over to the couch, every motion perfect. 

Richie suddenly wonders if Eddie will grow out of that. If he'll turn out graceful and lovely with his dark hair and honey-brown eyes, or if he'll stay a loud, perfectionist, foul-mouthed, overthinking teenager for the rest of his life. Either way, Richie wouldn’t mind it. He wouldn’t trade it for anything.

“How are we gonna watch the fireworks?” Eddie asks into Richie’s thoughts.

Richie stretches and thinks about it. They could drive to a spot in the hills, maybe go to the park. But he doesn’t feel like driving in the cold, and he knows Eddie wouldn’t either. “We can go on the roof.”

Eddie shrugs. “As long as we can see some sort of show.”

They get up off the couch and sprint up to Richie’s room. He pushes open the window and the cold of December hits them instantly. They shiver in unison and laugh. They each grab a jacket from Richie’s closet, slip on their shoes, then climb out the window. Eddie races Richie _carefully_ up to the highest point of the roof. He sits down with both legs on either side of the roof with his hands in front of himself to keep his balance. Richie sits down across from him and looks up to the dark sky. A cloud of condensation comes from his mouth as he sighs.

It’s a minute to midnight and Eddie suddenly feels exhausted.

He watches Richie and the way he falls slowly back onto the roof. He knows that it doesn't feel good, but Richie pretends to be comfortable with it. He puts his hands behind his head to try and feel some sort of protection from the pointed hard material. He stares up at the sky with waiting brown eyes.

Eddie crawls over to him. He slips carefully over his body and places his hands on Richie’s shoulders. He forces his face right above Richie’s and smiles. Richie smiles back and rubs a gentle hand over Eddie’s arm. Eddie leans in to kiss him, but Richie’s other hand stops it. A barrier between them.

“Gotta save it for midnight!” Richie justifies.

Eddie rolls his eyes and pushes Richie’s hand away. Eddie lays there on his chest and watches the trees sway in the low winds. Then, there’s a crack in the sky and both their heads shoot upward. They don't speak while fireworks brighten the sky, a thousand shimmering stars that sizzle for a moment before they fade.

Richie continues to watch the sky, fixing his glasses and savoring the moment. Eddie slips his hand to the back of Richie’s neck and leans in. He stops when their foreheads touch.

“Can I kiss you now?” Eddie asks. His minty breath fanning over Richie’s face in comforting warmth.

Richie sighs, “Don’t need to fucking ask me twice,” 

And he kisses Eddie hard at first. Eddie’s hands grip at the fabric of his shirt and jacket, balling it inside his fists. He thinks of nothing but the fireworks overhead and the feeling of Eddie pressed so close against him. He smiles as they kiss and he wraps his arms tightly around Eddie, hugging him closer.

Eddie is the first to part and he opens his eyes. He licks his lips and smirks, “Happy New Year,” he whispers.

“And to you too, hot stuff,”

Eddie rolls his eyes, laughs, and rests his cheek against Richie’s chest. Richie twirls his fingers around a stray curl sticking up from Eddie’s cowlick.

The fireworks begin to die off and the two lay there in silence. The cold starts to become too much, so they climb back through Richie’s window and go back downstairs to watch Home Alone like Eddie wanted. Richie munches on a snack and leans into Eddie’s side on the couch. He rests his head on his shoulder and Eddie tilts his head to rest his cheek against Richie’s curls.

It was the first day of the new year and Eddie felt okay. He felt better than okay, actually. At ease. Happy. He didn’t care about the next semester or work or his mother. All that mattered was how Richie started to fall asleep against him. How Eddie’s right side started to get almost too warm from the body against it.

The two of them. Just them, on the couch that Eddie had come to know so well, the home that had become his own. Always the two of them. And if Eddie wanted to spend the rest of his days and nights beside Richie, then that was something he wanted to wait to admit to Richie. Maybe when they got older and got out of Derry. 

But for now, Eddie watches the movie with his arm around Richie, waiting to drift off into sleep; or maybe even wait for the sun to rise.


End file.
